Fighting breaks out in Sudan’s El Gedaref, seven dead

At least seven people were killed during clashes in El Gedaref in eastern Sudan over the weekend. Dozens of people were reportedly wounded.

A dispute between a woman and a man about the price of a barrel of water, grew violent and led to the immediate death of the woman on Saturday, listeners told Radio Dabanga from El Gedaref.

Consecutive fighting between the relatives of the victim and the water seller led to the “outbreak of tribal clashes”, the sources reported. They said that eight people were killed and at least 50 were injured on Saturday and Sunday.

Brig Gen Saleh Abakar, Rapporteur of the Security Committee of El Gedaref state, stated on Sunday that seven people died and 22 others were injured.

The Sudanese Professionals Association described the violence in El Gedaref over the weekend as a “counter-revolution”.

In a statement issued on Sunday, the Association said it “has anxiously been watching the news of a limited dispute between a group of individuals in one of the districts of El Gedaref, one of the beacons of our revolution. The dispute escalated into a larger tribal-like confrontation that, according to doctors, claimed the lives of several people. Dozens sustained injuries.”

The Alliance of Freedom and Change in El Gedaref also issued a statement, and blamed members of the army, police, and the fire department for “taking the stance of onlookers during the violent conflict in El Gedaref”.

The statement made mention of “masked men carrying firearms” taking part in the fighting, “which indicates that there is a conspiracy of remnants of the former regime, trying to inflame clashes in order to return the ousted country leaders”.