Roads in North Darfur’s Kutum still blocked

The roads linking the town of Kutum in North Darfur with other towns in the locality are still blocked.

On Friday, El Mahriya tribesmen blockaded traffic in the northern part of Kutum locality in reaction to the arrest of their chief, Omda Mustafa El Dud Mahdi, four days earlier.

“The people are terrified by the heavily armed tribesmen roaming in the streets. The gunmen are also plundering shops in the various districts,” a resident of Kutum town told Radio Dabanga.

He reported that Kutum resident Tahir Ishag was shot in the leg on Saturday evening, after he refused to hand over his mobile phone.

The source called on the authorities to intervene, and “restore the rule of law in the locality by sending more well-equipped police”.

In October, the Commissioner of Kutum locality, Adam Awadelkarim Bosh, resigned from his post, reportedly in protest against the security situation and the state government’s inaction to solve it.

Bosh reportedly complained that the Ministries of Justice and the Interior had not provided judicial and policing organs such as a judge, a prosecutor, and a police force for five years.

Forces were sent to the locality later that month to implement measures set by the North Darfur government to curb the rampant insecurity. Three days after their arrival, however, they left again.

“After the government troops left, militiamen immediately began to create havoc. Riding their unnumbered cars and motorcycles they began to make the towns, markets, and villages unsafe again,” a listener reported to Radio Dabanga from Kutum.