A/HRC/6/19 page 9 under the Government’s control that it be prohibited to make civilians or civilian objects, including cultivated land and livestock, the target of attacks or to launch indiscriminate attacks, including burning of villages and aerial bombing; that such attacks can amount to war crimes and crimes against humanity; that suspects, including bearers of command responsibility, would be investigated and brought to justice; and that any immunities would be waived (recommendation 1.1.1) and enforced (see section C on accountability and justice below). The Government informed the group of experts on the draft Sudanese Armed Forces bill of 2007 (see paragraph 45 below), which contains a chapter on international humanitarian law and war crimes and is currently under consideration by Parliament. On 30 October 2007, the group of experts received a copy of a declaration of the Sudanese Armed Forces concerning the regulations and rules of conduct of armed forces personnel in conflict zones, which the Government indicated had been circulated to all units of the armed forces. The group also received information on a directive on the code of conduct of the armed forces during armed conflicts, issued by the headquarters of the Army Joint Operations Unit. The code of conduct explains that the provisions of international humanitarian law and of Islamic law are fully compatible with each other and stresses that the responsibility for stopping humanitarian law violations falls on military commanders and any military leader who, within his area of responsibility, must ensure that the law is applied and who shall personally make sure that all persons under his responsibility are aware of their responsibility under the law. The code states that, during military operations, all persons should avoid harming the civilian populations and civilian objects, unless they become military objectives; all necessary precautions should be taken; reparations should be provided for mistakes committed; and all types of attacks against women should be prohibited. In addition, civilians who participate in the hostilities should not be subject to attack, killing, torture or detention. Civilians who engage in hostile actions should be restricted to certain areas and should not be exposed to inhumane treatment. Humanitarian workers and organizations providing aid should be protected. The code is addressed to the Sudanese Armed Forces and the Popular Defence Forces, and does not refer to any militias operating under the control or in cooperation with the Government. 19. The Government asserted that these and other measures taken to implement the recommendations had led to clear progress in Darfur as attested, in particular, by the return of 359,000 internally displaced persons and refugees to their places of origin, a fall in reported cases of violence against civilians, including women, and the massive presence of humanitarian workers in Darfur. The group of experts, without taking position on the nature and sustainability of reported returns of displaced persons, notes that, according to United Nations figures, more than 267,000 persons had been displaced since the beginning of 2007, with particularly high figures in August, September and October. The group also takes note of the very detailed reports on continuing acts of violence committed against civilians in different parts of Darfur (see annex I), indicating that the measures taken had little or no impact on the ground. According to United Nations sources, from 20 June to mid-November 2007, at least 15 land and air attacks were made on civilian centres in all three Darfur states by the forces of the Government, affiliated militia and the Minni Minawi faction of the Sudanese Liberation Army (SLA/MM). On several occasions, civilian casualties resulted from clashes between warring parties who failed to distinguish between combatants and non-combatants, and used disproportionate and indiscriminate means of warfare. As a result of those attacks, over 170 civilians were killed. The attacks led to widespread looting and destruction of civilian property, including hundreds of houses, the theft and killing of large numbers of livestock, and the displacement of thousands of