Darfur: Girl, farmers wounded in attacks

Ten people were wounded in separate incidents in Nyala and Tawila localities in Darfur on Thursday, involving armed herders.

A gunman opened fire and seriously wounded a 11-year-old displaced girl, who went out of Otash camp in South Darfur in order to take cattle out for grazing.

The girl, Jamila Adam Saeed, refused to hand over the animals when an armed man tried to steal them. He shot and seriously wounded her, according to a Sheikh in Otash camp speaking to Radio Dabanga. Jamila is being treated at a hospital.

Farmer-herder tension

In North Darfur's Tawila, nine farmers were injured when armed herders attacked them. Three of the victims are seriously injured.

One of the victims told this station that a group of about 30 herders, riding camels, attacked them in Dubbo El Omda at 8am on Thursday. “They beat us with rifle butts, sticks, and hit us with whips.”

The three victims with serious injuries were transferred to El Fasher for treatment. All of their money, donkeys and other cattle are stolen.

The farmer reported their names are: Satiya Osman El Rashid, Kaltoum Abdullah Mohamed, Kaltoum Khatrallah, Hawa Ahmed Adam, Mariam Mohamed Ismail, Umufugara Mohamed Ahmed, Elfaki Mohammad Ismail, Sakina Adam and Meram Adam Abdullah.

In a related event, farmers in Kabkabiya complained about repeated attacks by armed herdsmen who enter their livestock on the farmlands by force of arms for the last five days.

“Large areas planted with millet, sorghum, groundnuts, sesame, hibiscus, melon and cucumber have been destroyed,” a farmer told Radio Dabanga yesterday.

The farmers have appealed to the native administrations and local authorities to intervene and stop the assaults by the herders, so that they are able to harvest their crops.