Investigating fatalities by state in Darfur reveals noteworthy
trends. While true that by the end of 2017 the number of civilian
killings within each of Darfur’s five states had subsided since reaching
their respective maximums, the number of killings in Central Darfur (95)
was higher than its interquartile range. In fact, in 2016 Central Darfur
had seen its highest civilian fatality total (253) since the
peacekeeping mission had begun. Still, the UN
pressed ahead with withdrawing from 10 UN bases from Darfur in the
second half of 2017 alone.
Additionally, by the end of 2018, killings in West, South, and
Central Darfur (30, 97, and 73, respectively) were near or above their
respective seventy-fifth percentile values of their interquartile
ranges. Yet, the UN continued to withdraw bases. A noticeable uptick in
killings in West Darfur occurred in 2019, 46 fatalities, above the
region’s interquartile range.
By the end of 2021, once UNAMID troops had all departed, there were
already more civilian killings in West Darfur (155) than at any point
since the mission had begun in 2008. With violence levels so high in
several regions during the mission’s drawdown phase, one might have
expected the UN to withdraw its remaining bases at least more
slowly.