Sudan : le caverne come rifugio

Lewere, Sudan – As the July 9 division of Sudan nears, the government in Khartoum is scrambling to crush any rebellious chunks of the territory that will remain its own. Its forces have been relentlessly pounding the Nuba Mountains from Russian-made Antonov bombers for weeks, demanding that tens of thousands of rebel fighters dug in here disarm and drop their insistence on more autonomy for the distinctive Nuba people.
Hundreds of civilians have been killed, including many children. Bombs have been dropped on huts, on farmers in the field, on girls fetching water together, slicing them in half with buckets in their hands.
As the area inches toward becoming fully engulfed in war, the Nuba caves offer a crucial refuge.
Fatima Ramadan, mother of six, froze, her eyes shooting up to the sky.
“Antonov!” she yelled.
Little girls threw down the pebbles they were playing with. Toddlers, sensing danger, started to wail. About two dozen people grabbed the young and dashed up the mountainside into a cave. It was hot and dark inside, and the children’s eyes were wide with fear.
“I don’t like this place,” said Kaka, a 10-year-old girl.
Nobody does. And yet thousands of people live like this.

A child takes refuge in the Nuba Mountains in Lewere. Hundreds of civilians have been killed, including many children. Bombs have been dropped on huts, on farmers in the field, on girls fetching water together, slicing them in half with buckets in their hands. (Tyler Hicks/The New York Times)

A girl stands on a ledge in the Nuba Mountains in Kurchi, Sudan. Government forces have been pounding the Nuba Mountains from Russian-made Antonov bombers for weeks, demanding that tens of thousands of rebel fighters dug in there disarm and drop their insistence on more autonomy for the distinctive Nuba people. (Tyler Hicks/The New York Times)

People wash their clothes in the Nuba Mountains in Kurchi, Sudan. (Tyler Hicks/The New York Times)

People wash their clothes in the Nuba Mountains in Kurchi, Sudan, July 3, 2011. Government forces have been pounding the Nuba Mountains from Russian-made Antonov bombers for weeks, demanding that tens of thousands of rebel fighters dug in there disarm and drop their insistence on more autonomy for the distinctive Nuba people. (Tyler Hicks/The New York Times)

Mothers and children rest in the Nuba Mountains in Kurchi, Sudan. (Tyler Hicks/The New York Times)

An elderly woman in a cave in the Nuba Mountains in Kurchi, Sudan, July 3, 2011. (Tyler Hicks/The New York Times)

Children play with pebbles on a hillside in the Nuba Mountains in Lewere, Sudan. Hundreds of civilians have been killed, including many children. Bombs have been dropped on huts, on farmers in the field, on girls fetching water together, slicing them in half with buckets in their hands. (Tyler Hicks/The New York Times)

Women and children run to a cave entrance when a plane is heard overhead in the Nuba Mountains in Lewere, Sudan, July 1, 2011. (Tyler Hicks/The New York Times)

People take refuge in the Nuba Mountains in Lewere. As the area inches toward becoming fully engulfed in war, the Nuba caves offer a crucial refuge. (Tyler Hicks/The New York Times)

A child is comforted in the Nuba Mountains in Lewere, Sudan. As the July 9 division of Sudan nears, the government in Khartoum is scrambling to crush any rebellious chunks of the territory that will remain its own. (Tyler Hicks/The New York Times)

Mothers and children take refuge in the Nuba Mountains in Lewere, Sudan, July 1, 2011. About two dozen people grabbed the young and dashed up the mountainside into a cave. It was hot and dark inside, and the children�s eyes were wide with fear. (Tyler Hicks/The New York Times)

Children hide in a cave in the Nuba Mountains in Lewere, Sudan, July 1, 2011. Government forces have been pounding the Nuba Mountains from Russian-made Antonov bombers for weeks, demanding that tens of thousands of rebel fighters dug in there disarm and drop their insistence on more autonomy for the distinctive Nuba people. (Tyler Hicks/The New York Times)
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