Annan alarmed at reports of widespread abuses of civilians in Darfur, Sudan

As humanitarian workers said nearly 10,000 new Sudanese refugees had fled into Chad from the strife-torn Darfur region of the Sudan, United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan expressed alarm today at reports of widespread abuses against Darfur civilians and the obstructing of humanitarian efforts there.

The reports included "killings, rape and the burning and looting of entire villages," his spokesman quoted him as saying.

"Insecurity is also severely hampering humanitarian assistance efforts as many of the 1 million civilians affected by the conflict remain beyond the reach of relief workers," Mr. Annan said.

He called on all parties to grant humanitarian organizations safe and unimpeded access, join the peace talks on Darfur scheduled to resume tomorrow in Abeche, eastern Chad, and finalize an inclusive ceasefire without further delay.

Humanitarian organizations estimate that 4 million Sudanese have been displaced internally or have been forced to leave the country, Africa's largest, because of the long-running factional conflict.

The UN World Food Programme (WFP) said a recent assessment mission to south Darfur found that 46 of the 62 villages had been completely burned, while the other 16 had been looted.

The newest refugees, who brought the number to have fled across the Chadian-Sudanese border over the last seven months to 75,000, alleged that there has been aerial bombardment of villages and "ethnic cleansing" by pro-government Arab militias, the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) said.

Local authorities have been registering the new arrivals and aid is being distributed to the most vulnerable among them, UNHCR said.

The largest number - 6,000 - have settled in Tisi, south of the border town Adre, but UNHCR employees said they have been unable to visit them because of lack of security in the area. Another 3,000 are in Ade and Nakoulouta, also south of Adre, it said, and 1,000 are in Birak, northeast of Abeche, the main town in eastern Chad.

Darfur was an independent sultanate of Muslim converts until 1916 when the British expelled the Sultan and incorporated the sultanate into Sudan, whose government is now dominated by Muslim Arabs.

The first privately funded and operated airlift in WFP history took place last weekend when TPG/TNT Airways transported two Toyota Land Cruisers, four mobile storage tents and office and warehouse equipment to Chad's capital, N'djamena, for transport to Abeche, WFP said.