Renewed Beni Halba, Gimr tribal clashes in Darfur reach 4th day

At least eight people died and seven were injured in a fourth day of renewed clashes between the tribes of Beni Halba and Gimr in South Darfur. The two sides had fought violently in February and resumed armed conflicts on Friday as they accused each other of breaching a previously signed peace treaty. In February, dispute over land ownership between the Beni Halba and Gimr tribes left eight killed (four from each side) and four wounded. Six villages were also were burned as a result of the battles in the area of Edd Al Fursan, that displaced some 750 families. Although the warring tribes had signed a ceasefire agreement a few weeks later, a reconciliation conference was postponed twice and eventually delayed “indefinitely”. Members of the two sides blame the state’s government for poorly organizing the conference leading to its “failure”. Eyewitnesses in Haraza and Eidera, where clashes respectively took place over the weekend and on Monday, told Radio Dabanga that both tribes suffered heavy human and equipment losses in the battles.    A Beni Halba deputy confirmed that armed conflicts against the Gimr erupted on Friday in Haraza and added that hostilities “grew stronger on Monday in Eidera”. He said that eight Beni Halba fighters were killed on Monday and five were injured. Four of the wounded, along with the bodies of two of the deceased gunmen, were transferred to Edd Al Fursan, an alleged Beni Halba stronghold. Spokesman for the Gimr, Abkar Al Toum, also confirmed the occurrence of battles over the last two days, noting that the two parties were fighting until Monday evening in Eidera. Toum said that “many people were killed and wounded” in the clashes. However, exact figures are not yet available as fighting continues “despite the presence of government forces in the region”.   The Gimr source also said that making a casualties’ assessment is complicated as no one can enter the battlefield and communication by phone is impossible. Last Friday afternoon, the South Darfur government had issued a decree stipulating that the Gimr land in Katayla locality would be allocated to the Beni Halba. Gimr delegations said the government’s resolutions were against the Sudanese constitution and asked them to be withdrawn before they re-joined the negotiation table, sources said.  File photo by Olivier Chassot/ UNAMIDRelated: Beni Halba, Gimr tribes in new violent clashes in South Darfur (26 April 2013)