Some 600,000 people have fled the fighting in Darfur

Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF) says new camps have been set up in areas close to fighting, with no food or water.

The 10,000 people have fled into the bush, where there is little medical help or relief supplies, MSF says.

Some 600,000 people have fled the fighting in Darfur, which threatens the peace process in the south.

Intense fighting

"Among those who fled were families with severely malnourished children who had been under the care of MSF and did not arrive for their treatment," the aid agency said.

The camps were in Nyala, capital of southern Darfur province.

Diplomats have described the fighting in Darfur as "ethnic cleansing" with Arab militias, possibly backed by the government, destroying entire villages inhabited by dark-skinned people who speak African languages.

Two groups rose up against the government last year and fighting has intensified since peace talks with one of the groups collapsed last month.

Some aid workers fear that the conflict in Darfur is being ignored as international attention is focused on the peace talks between the government and the rebels based in southern Sudan.