Five killed in South Kordofan ambush

Five people were killed and six others were wounded in an ambush by gunmen near the Labzar mine in Gadier, South Kordofan, on Wednesday.

Five people were killed on the spot but the six who sustained various injuries were taken to the hospital in Kologi for treatment.

Mohamed Mukhtar explained to Radio Dabanga that one of the attackers was killed as well. His body was handed over to the army garrison in Kologi.

He said that the perpetrators had moved their families from Gardoud Toro to Gardoud Um Radmi on Tuesday before the incident was carried out.

Gadier residents see the incident as an extension of the tribal conflict in the locality since last year.

South Kordofan violence

Last year, Radio Dabanga reported that a group of Hawazma herders (most of them belonging to the Dar Ali) are in conflict with the Kenana, Kawahla, and other tribes in the area. They formed the Nusra Front for Justice and Development in Gardoud Toro (near Kologi) in October.

The militant group is allegedly headed by an army officer affiliated with the deposed regime of Omar Al Bashir. They are equipped with weapons such as machine guns and wear uniforms of the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) and the Popular Defence Forces militia that was dissolved in June last year.

They have been attacking people in the area.

In recent months, South Kordofan has seen increased violence and Nuba residents fear that the state’s Nuba Mountains will become a ‘second Darfur’ as farmers continue to face attacks by militant herders.

In Darfur, a genocide has taken place against indigenous farmers by militant Arab herders supported by the regime of ousted dictator Omar Al Bashir. As Janjaweed militias, they killed many African farmers. In recent years, attacks by herdsmen against Darfur’s farmers and non-Arab herding groups have continued, resulting in many deaths.

Many Janjaweed militants have been assimilated into the RSF, commanded by Sovereignty Council Vice-Chairman Mohamed Hamdan ‘Hemeti’ Dagalo.