The bodies of dozens of persons who were allegedly slain by militias affiliated with Sudanese paramilitary groups have been discovered in a mass grave in West Darfur, according to a statement from the UN on Thursday.
The bodies of the 87 persons, some of whom are members of the Masalit tribe of ethnic Africans, were allegedly thrown in a one-meter (about three-foot) grave just outside the West Darfur city of Geneina, according to “credible information” acquired by the U.N. Human Rights Office.
According to a statement from the United Nations agency in Geneva, the first 37 dead were buried on June 20.
The next day, another 50 bodies were dumped at the same site. Seven women and seven children were among those buried.
Darfur has been at the epicenter of the 12-week conflict, morphing into ethnic violence with RSF troops and allied Arab militias attacking African ethnic groups.
News of the mass grave comes just days after Human Rights Watch called for the International Criminal Court to investigate atrocities in Darfur.