Unamid sector head addresses North Darfur tribal conference

Unamid’s Head of Office, Sector North, Mohamed El Amine Souef, has reaffirmed the Mission’s commitment to carry out its core mandate of protecting civilians, supporting local-level mediation, and facilitating humanitarian assistance. Addressing a gathering of tribal leaders in Kabkabiya, North Darfur on Thursday, Souef stressed Unamid’s commitment to help Darfuris bring about durable peace and stability. He urged all to support ongoing mediation efforts. “Without peace, there cannot be development, and without peace in Darfur, there cannot be stability in Sudan,” he said. More than 250 representatives of the Beni Hussein and Abbala tribes have gathered in Kabkabiya for a two-day reconciliation meeting set-up to address outstanding issues between them and diffuse tensions in the area. A reconciliation committee consisting of tribal representatives, Native Administration leaders, members of the security management committee, officials from the Government of Sudan and sheikh Musa Hilal initiated the meeting. The King and Shartai of the Fur, the Nazir, sheikhs and omdas of the Rezeigat, the Nazir of the Beni Hussein, the Amir of the Tama, other significant tribal leaders from Kabkabiya, Saraf Umra and El Sereif as well as government military and police personnel participated in the conference. The gathering, which commenced on Thursday, follows an escalation of conflict which resulted in the blockading of roads and preventing supplies, including food, medicine and fuel, from entering the El Sereif locality of North Darfur. (Source: Unamid) File photo: 26 May 2014. Peacekeepers for a Guard of Honour at the Unamid headquarters in El Fasher, North Darfur, at the official launch of the committee for the Darfur Internal Dialogue and Consultations (DIDC). (Albert Gonzalez Farran / Unamid)