By Opheera McDoom
EL-GENEINA, Sudan (Reuters) - Darfur rebels said onWednesday that 15 civilians had been killed in bombing bygovernment planes near the Chad border, part of an offensive torid the area of insurgents.
U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon called on all sides toshow restraint and humanitarian officials warned some 160,000civilians dependent on aid in the area north of West Darfur'scapital el-Geneina would be severely affected by the fighting.
"There were about 15 civilians killed by the aerialbombardment in Jabel Moun," Sheikh el-Din Mahin, thehumanitarian coordinator for the Darfur rebel Justice andEquality Movement (JEM) told Reuters by telephone from thearea.
"The mountain is very big so we have not been able togather all the injured or dead yet," he added. Aid officialsestimate some 20,000 Darfuris fled to Jabel Moun following aFebruary 8 army attack on three nearby towns.
The Sudanese army said it had launched a "cleansing"operation in the rebel-held mountainous region to open the wayfor humanitarian access and to rid it of Darfur and Chadianinsurgents, saying they were attacking civilians.
"We are in the east and the west of the mountain. Thesituation is stable and completely under our control," an armyspokesman said.
He said they did not yet have figures for any civilian orrebel losses during the fighting, but that nine army soldiershad been killed and 15 injured.
The rebel JEM and Sudan Liberation Army (SLA) in Jabel Mounsaid they still controlled the area and had pushed back threegovernment offensives.
Mostly non-Arab rebels took up arms in early 2003 accusingcentral government of neglect. But rebel divisions and thegovernment's mobilisation of mostly Arab tribal militia hascreated a chaotic mix of armed groups and a breakdown of lawand order in Sudan's remote west.
Darfur's revolt promoted a resurgency of neighbouringChad's civil war, with both capitals accusing each other offanning the flames of the conflicts.
Rebels said Jabel Moun was quiet on Wednesday, but remainedout of bounds for humanitarian workers and the U.N.-AfricanUnion peacekeeping mission.
U.N. chief Ban called for an end to the fighting and areturn to peace talks. "A negotiated settlement to the Darfurconflict cannot take place amid continuing violence and themassive displacement of civilians," he said.
He called the bombing of a largely empty refugee camp nearJabel Moun "unacceptable". Rebels said four were injured inthat bombing on Monday and U.N. officials said at least onewoman died after losing both her legs in the attack.
International experts estimate some 200,000 have died and2.5 million driven from their homes in Darfur. Khartoum blamesWestern media for exaggerating the fighting and puts the deathtoll at 9,000.
(Editing by Catherine Evans)
