6 Chadian soldiers die in Sudan border clash – West Darfuris fear reprisals

Six Chadian soldiers have reportedly been killed by armed men, believed to be Sudanese, in area of Roto in west Jokouma in Bindisi on the border between Central Darfur and Chad. Sources from the area told Radio Dabanga that the Chadian army has asked its Sudanese counterparts to hand over the perpetrators.

The sources said that a large number of residents of the border areas have fled to places in the western parts of Central Darfur, fearing reprisals by the Chadian army.

Discussions are reportedly ongoing between the two armies, amid fears and panic among the public, lest the talks on the border collapse.

Earlier this month, an armed group, believed to be Chadian, ambushed and killed 18 people who were tracking their stolen camels in the Bir Saliba area of West Darfur. In an attack by gunmen in Central Darfur, five members of the Sudanese regular forces were killed.

Following the violence, Sudan’s Vice President of the Sovereignty Council and Commander of the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), Lt Gen Mohamed Hamdan ‘Hemeti’, visited the president of Chad, Gen. Mahamat Idris Deby, to discuss how to enhance bilateral relations between the two countries.

Hemeti then travelled to West Darfur in a bid to defuse the situation. At the funeral for those killed in the attack, Hemeti called for restraint also vowing to resolve the ‘chaos across the border area’.

Chad shares a border of 1,360 kilometres with Sudan, it’s longest international border. There are frequent reports of banditry and lawlessness, as well as violent attacks on civilians by gangs of armed men, on both sides of the border.