The United Nations refugee agency, UNHCR, said on Tuesday that up to 400 people are estimated to have been killed in Chad during cross-border attacks by Sudanese Janjaweed militia some 10 days ago.
The agency said last week that Chadian authorities had reported an initial toll of at least 65 dead in the March 31 attacks on two villages in eastern Chad, Tiero and Marena. But the new estimate followed a visit by a group of UN agencies to the remote area on Sunday. "Estimates of the number of dead have increased substantially and now range between 200 and 400. Because most of the dead were buried where their bodies were found -- often in common graves owing to their numbers -- we may never know their exact number," UNHCR spokesman, Ron Redmond, told a briefing. |