UN warns of Sudan refugee exodus

Darfur is gripped by a humanitarian crisis

Some 30,000 refugees might cross into Chad to escape persecution in Sudan's Darfur region, the UN warns.

The displaced people have gathered at Masteri village to escape attacks by pro-government Arab militia, according to the UNHCR.

If they are not given protection, they say they will go to Chad as soon as the rain-swelled border river subsides.

The UN's ultimatum for the Sudanese government to disarm the militia expires at the end of this month.

Squalid conditions

More than 1.2 million people in Darfur have fled their homes since fighting began 18 months ago.

The UN says the influx would strain its ability to provide food and shelter for refugees in Chad.

DARFUR CONFLICT More than 1m displaced Up to 50,000 killed More at risk from disease and starvation Arab militias accused of ethnic cleansing Sudan blames rebels for starting conflict Q&A: Darfur conflict

Some 180,000 people are living in desperate conditions in camps on Chad's side of the border.

The World Health Organisation has just confirmed an outbreak of Hepatitis E among refugees in Chad.

According the UNHCR's Katie McKenzie - who met the refugees in Masteri, 50km south of El Geneina - they are now effectively imprisoned in squalid conditions.

If they leave the village, to farm or collect wood, women are raped and men are shot.

Security on the ground does not appear to be improving, despite the approaching UN deadline for the Arab militias, called the Janjaweed, to be disarmed.

"There is no law and order in Darfur right now - it's totally the rule of the gun," journalist Patrick Smith, who has recently toured Darfur, told the BBC's Focus on Africa programme.

He saw no evidence of disarmament in the region and some reports suggested that militia around El-Fashir in the north were actually rearming, he said.

'No intervention'

As the 30 August UN Security Council deadline approaches, the international community will continue to try to work with the government of Sudan over Darfur rather than intervene directly, a senior British Foreign Office official said on Friday.

The Khartoum government is not in favour of a peacekeeping force

He was speaking in advance of a two-day visit to Sudan by British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw starting on Monday.

"The strategy is to work as far as we can with the government of Sudan not against it. We think that the best way to deliver security to the people is to get the government to do it," he said.

The BBC's Paul Reynolds says that Mr Straw's visit has been timed to help him reach a conclusion as to what the Security Council should do next.

But it appears at the moment that a policy of firm encouragement will be continued, with the threat of sanctions held back, our correspondent says.

Peacekeepers

On Thursday, the Nigerian Senate gave its approval for 1,500 peacekeeping troops to be sent to Darfur.

An initial deployment of 150 Nigerian troops will form part of a 300-strong African Union (AU) force in Darfur to guard ceasefire monitors.

The AU is considering whether to expand the force to 1,800 soldiers, though Sudan has not yet accepted this.

According to the senior Foreign Office official in London, Britain supports an expanded monitoring force by the AU and hopes that countries like Egypt and Algeria would consider joining.

AU-sponsored peace talks are due to begin on Monday in Nigeria, between the Sudanese government and two black African rebel groups it has been fighting in Darfur.

Sudan denies backing the Arab Janjaweed militias and says the rebel groups are responsible for the crisis.