West Kordofan: ‘No police response’ after farmer and son slain by gunmen

A group of gunmen killed a farmer and his son, also shooting and injuring the farmer’s sister near their farm in the El Fugara village of Lagawa in West Kordofan on August 17, according to a new report by the Human Rights and Development Organisation (HUDO).

The slain farmer, Ahmed Mousa, was travelling with his son and sister from their farm when an armed group shot at them along the road, HUDO reported.

The father and son died instantly from gunshots to the chest and abdomen, while the sister survived only sustaining injuries to her left arm. The attackers reportedly disappeared after the shooting.

The injured sister informed her relatives and local residents of the incident, and they collected the dead bodies taking them to the Lagawa hospital, where the farmer’s sister was also treated for her injuries.

The slayings near the farmstead have been reported to the local authorities, but no action was taken, and the police “did not carry out the necessary investigations or even visit the crime scene,” the human rights organisation stated.

Earlier reports from HUDO in May concerning the death of three people in South Kordofan appealed to the local authorities to “restore the rule of law in the state”.

HUDO lambasted the police for having not carried out appropriate investigations in any of the incidents, especially in the case where regular armed forces were reportedly responsible for at least one of the violent events.

A community leader in Lagawa said during the cultivation season in August, intercommunal conflicts between nomads from Arab ethnic groups and farmers from the Nuba ethnic group increase. He added “that this year particularly, the tensions are high”.

HUDO called upon the police in West Kordofan to “execute their duties responsibly and to immediately investigate this case”.