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Tens of thousands of civilians have fled Abyei and its surrounding areas as a result of the Sudanese army’s seizure and occupation of the disputed border region. Since the incursion, widespread looting and destruction of Abyei town under the army’s watch has been documented and humanitarian agencies continue to face challenges accessing the newly displaced communities.

Three and a half months from now, the world's newest nation will be born: the Republic of Southern Sudan. Heady times for a people who have fought for 50 years for freedom, and won the right to vote in what was a peaceful independence referendum in January. But this road to freedom is filled with danger points, none more so than Abyei, the hotly disputed Connecticut-sized territory wedged within the border between North and South.

By Don Cheadle and John Prendergast

There is a moment in every global crisis where things no longer seem new and dynamic. Where hope for a solution is replaced with uncertainty, which morphs into cynicism, despair, or even indifference. Many people who were such enthusiastic supporters of building a movement to end the genocide in Darfur have gone through some of these stages, frustrated by the lack of a resolution of the crisis there.

In the aftermath of a wave of violence in Abyei that left over 100 dead and saw the systematic burning of three villages just north of Abyei town, tens of thousands of civilians have fled while residents still in town are angry, disillusioned, and anxious, according to on-the-ground reporting and visuals from Enough photographer Tim Freccia. Freccia, who has been based in Abyei since violence broke out early last week, reports that the situation in the contested and highly-volatile border region today is relatively quiet, if fraught with tension.