A Sudanese militia group has dismissed a U.N. report saying government-allied groups were guilty of sexual violence against women in the South Darfur region.
The report issued Tuesday by the U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights says armed men kidnapped about 50 women from villages in South Darfur last December after an attack by government forces and allied militia. The report says the women were held for a month and raped repeatedly.
The state-run Sudanese Media Center quotes a spokesman for the Popular Defense Forces militia group, PDF, as calling the U.N. accusations baseless.
The spokesman said the PDF is not in the areas mentioned in the U.N. report. He called the report a deliberate fabrication to create unrest and prolong the conflict in Darfur.
Sudanese media also report that the prosecuting attorney in South Darfur state has charged 19 people arrested late Tuesday at the Kalma refugee camp. The officials say those arrested were suspected of attacking a police station.