By Opheera McDoom
SULEIA, Sudan (Reuters) - Crammed into school buildings inthe centre of Suleia, just 200 out of the West Darfur town'soriginal 25,000 population were left after an attack by militiaand the Sudanese army.
Thursday was the first time anyone from outside had beenable to reach the town and the people remaining were mostlyelderly women, those with babies or old men.
They were not able to run as far as others to escape thebombing and the militia who looted and burned and killed.
Suleia was targeted as part of an army offensive on threetowns to retake them from the Darfur rebel Justice and EqualityMovement (JEM) almost a week earlier.
Among the survivors, Hawa Suleiman had no breast milk tofeed her five-month-old baby after she spent a week under atree with no food following the attack.
"The Janjaweed came and took everything, our food, ourfurniture," said the 35-year-old mother, who did not know whereany of her other six children or her husband was.
Her face, cut with traditional tribal markings, was wornwith worry as she struggled to quieten her crying, hungrychild. She said she came back on Thursday because she heard aidworkers had brought food.
A joint U.N.-humanitarian convoy brought food to the areafor the first time since mid-December. Some 160,000 people hadbeen cut off from aid since then, said U.N. official AmyMartin.
"We have not bathed for a week," said 75-year-old MohamedEissa Abdallah, bent over double with age and leaning on awooden staff. His face and clothes were caked with dust andmud.
"I buried my brother with my own hands," he said.
Many of the survivors said at least one member of theirfamily had been killed.
A Sudanese staff of the International Committee for the RedCross was killed in the attack on Suleia. Washington calls theDarfur violence genocide, a term Khartoum rejects, blamingWestern media for exaggerating the conflict.
The offensive was the largest in many months and aidagencies say it affected 50,000-60,000 people, less thaninitial rebel estimates of up to 200,000. Up to 12,000 refugeesfled into neighbouring eastern Chad, the U.N. refugee agencysaid.
Residents say 114 people were killed in total by theattacks, but the army insists some were rebels wearing civilianclothes.
JANJAWEED ATTACK
Sudan denies any link to the militia, known locally asJanjaweed, who attacked all three towns just before theirforces entered. Suleia residents said they saw three planescircle overhead as the militia rode into town.
"Only one bombed - a white Antonov," said elderly MariamAbu Eissa.
JEM defeated Sudan's army and took control of the town inearly December but, hearing of the impending attack they hadleft a few days before, one resident said.
Suleia elder Abdallah Ibrahim el-Nur said the bombing andmilitia killed some 32 people. They had buried many soon afterbut some bodies were only found after five days lying in thesun, rotten and bloated.
"Some of them were so burnt (from the bombing) that youcould not even tell if they were women or men," Nur said.
He said the army arrived a day after the militia but tookanother four days to control their looting and drive them out.But he said the army never exchanged fire with the men.
"The government gives with its right hand and takes withits left," Nur said when asked how he felt that the army hadbombed the town first before coming to secure it and drive awaythe armed looters.
But they did not go far. Four Suleia elders went to show aReuters correspondent the site of the bombing, but ran intoJanjaweed still lurking in the deserted east of the town.
One man on horseback took out his rifle and the Suleiaresidents ran, zigzagging until they took shelter and hidbehind a walled hut.
Eventually joint U.N.-African Union peacekeepers and theSudanese army arrived and the militia, who were shooting in theair, left.
But that brief experience was a clear indication why thefew residents left in town were living in the school in thetown's central square and had not returned to their homes.
Despite initial reports that the entire town had beenburnt, only a few dozen homes had been scorched. But theJanjaweed continued to loot.
The International Criminal Court has issued arrest warrantsfor a junior government minister and an allied militia leaderaccused of conspiring in war crimes. Khartoum refuses to handthem over.
(Editing by Charles Dick)
