South Darfur violence claims another victim

The death toll of the violence in Beleil locality in South Darfur rose to 14. A farmer killed a herder during a fight on Sunday, after which herders attacked Dewana village and the surrounding area on Monday, killing 12 people. Yesterday, a resident of Um Gunja village was reported killed as well.

The state governor and his security committee visited the area yesterday. The governor announced he had formed a committee to investigate the incident.

A joint force of army troops and Rapid Support Forces paramilitaries temporarily maintain order in cooperation with the local police.

Omda Noureldin Ishag reported to Radio Dabanga that the residents of the area said to the governor that they are trapped within their villages.

They told the governor that the attacks of the herders on the villages are linked to their unwillingness to vacate the lands surrounding the villages.

“A couple of years ago, Arab herders settled on agricultural land of people who fled the war and are now living in camps for the displaced,” the omda explained. “Since 2017, the residents in the area have been subjected to such attacks,” he added, pointing to the death of more than 31 people.

The Sudan Liberation Movement (SLM) founded by Abdelwahid El Nur, the SLM split-off faction headed by Minni Minawi, the SLM-Transitional Council faction, the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM), the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement-North headed by Malik Agar and the Darfur Bar Association condemned the attack on Dewana village.

In separate statements, the rebel groups all denounced “the government’s silence” regarding the crimes in Dewana village.

The Darfur Bar Association said it holds ‘Khartoum’ and the state government “fully responsible for not disarming these militiamen and allowing them to tamper with the lives of citizens”.

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