Khartoum, Apr 10 (IANS): The death toll from the recent armed clashes in El Geneina, capital city of Sudan's West Darfur State, has increased to 137, while the number of the injured stood at 221.

"The committee counted a new toll of victims, bringing the number of those who were killed so far to 137 and the injured to 221," the Central Committee of Sudan Doctors announced on Friday.

The armed clashes broke out on April 3 in El Geneina city between the Al-Massalit and Arab tribes, reports Xinhua news agency.

On April 5, Sudan's Security and Defence Council declared a state of emergency in West Darfur state and authorised forces to adopt all necessary measures to end armed clashes.

Sudan's Darfur region has been mired in a civil war since 2003.

On December 31, 2020, the UN Security Council unanimously passed a resolution that ends the mandate of the UN-African Union Hybrid Operation in Darfur (UNAMID) in the region. The around 16,000 UNAMID soldiers, who have been deployed in Darfur since 2007, are set to complete their exit in July.

Meanwhile, a UN Integrated Transitional Assistance Mission in Sudan (UNITAMS) will be deployed during 2021 to support the transitional period in the country.

The transitional government in Sudan is trying to fill in the security gap in Darfur by forming a special force from the security and military institutions and armed groups which signed a peace agreement with the government in October 2020.