French authorities expressed concern Monday after receiving reports of mass crimes against women in the troubled Darfur region of Western Sudan, an official statement said.
The French Foreign Ministry said that the concerns arose after indications about 200 women and young girls were raped and sexually assaulted by armed men in northern Darfur about ten days ago.
The alleged abuses took place on the night of October 31, the French statement said, without identifying the perpetrators.
Paris "calls on the government of Sudan to shed all light on these indications and to fight against impunity and guarantee access to the concerned zones by the African Union mission and the United Nations in Darfur," the Foreign Ministry said.
Hundreds of thousands of mainly civilians have perished in seven years of fighting between Sudanese forces and rebel groups in Darfur and over two million people have been made refugees.
Sudanese President Omar Al-Bashir and several of his leading advisors have been indicted by the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague for war crimes and crimes against humanity because of the killing of civilians in Darfur by Sudanese troops and militias.
Warrants for their arrest have been issued but not implemented by many countries because they are not part of the founding instruments of the ICC.