Darfur gunmen ‘see coup as a license to resume attacks’

Attacks on Darfuri villagers increased following the military coup of October 25, in particular in North Darfur where more than 2,000 families reportedly fled to Zamzam camp for the displaced. Yesterday, two farmers were killed on their farms in Tawila. Armed robberies have been reported in Central Darfur.

Hamad Ibrahim (35) and Mohamed El Doma (25) were killed on their farms near the Naivasha camp for displaced people near Shangil Tobaya in North Darfur’s Tawila on Wednesday.

Speaking to Radio Dabanga, a relative of the victims reported that seven militant herders drove their camels into the farms of Hammad Ibrahim (35) and Mohamed El Doma (25) yesterday afternoon. When the farmers protested, they were shot dead.   

The incident was reported to the joint military forces stationed in Shangil Tobaya.

In October, the harvest month, Radio Dabanga received reports of increased attacks on farms by militant Arab herders. On October 19, the North Darfur state government declared a State of Emergency in Tawila and Dar El Salam to secure the harvest season.

End last month however, sources reported from the area that the violence surged since the military coup of October 25.

Sudan researcher and analyst Eric Reeves said in a tweet yesterday that the Arab militiamen in North Darfur “see the coup as a license to resume attacks on non-Arab farmers without fear their crimes will be communicated”.

Reeves posted a report on the “widespread ethnic violence” in the region, saying that a new wave of displacement is taking place in Tawila.

“Around 2018 families have managed to reach Zamzam camp in the past 48 hours,” a “highly informed and completely reliable witness” said. Among them are “many women who suffered horrendous beatings-many with broken arms and elbows, many more who suffered blows to the heads [..]”.

Central Darfur attacks

In Garni, 12 km from Nierteti in Central Darfur, military forces held Jamal Abdelrahman, Director of the Garni Secondary School, on Tuesday. A listener told Radio Dabanga from the area that he was detained because he protested against the release of livestock on his farm.

The next day, students of the school staged a protest against the detention of the director of the school. “The military forces fired live ammunition in the air to disperse the protesters,” he said.

Last week, three men were killed in the neighbourhood of Garsila, ​​Central Darfur. Adam Okar told Radio Dabanga that the victims were part of a local search posse formed on Thursday after Zakaria Eisa was beaten up by gunmen who stole his motorcycle.  

When the men were tracking down the two perpetrators, they were shot. Eisa El Hafez (27), Yahya Eisa (24), and Mohamed Eisa (21) were killed instantly. Relatives have reported the incident to the Unified Police of Garsila.

On Tuesday, five armed men robbed the passengers of two commercial transport vehicles near Nierteti.

The attackers, riding on motorcycles, blocked the road near Mount Malaga, west of Nierteti, and shot at the vehicles to stop them. They beat the passengers with their whips and rifle butts, and robbed them of their money and mobile phones. Two wounded passengers were transferred to the hospital of Nierteti Hospital.