South Darfur farmers abducted; thirst in El Salam

Seven displaced farmers have been kidnapped by militiamen from the Jabour area, ten kilometres west of Gireida in South Darfur.

A witness told Radio Dabanga on Wednesday that a group of militants riding camels and wearing military uniform opened fire in the air, and abducted Mohamed Abdallah Eisa Osman Dooda, Adam Abakar Mohammad Ahmed, Abdullah Eisa and Abakar Mohammad Ali, Mohammad Adam Ali and Osman Mohammed Daoud.

The victims are displaced people who now live in Gireida, but had returned to Jabour to tend their farms. The witness explained that other displaced people went to rescue them after the police refused, but the kidnappers opened fire and forced them to return.

Water crisis

The displaced persons of camp El Salam south of Nyala in South Darfur face an acute drinking water crisis. Farmers, who control six water pumps, have shut them down.

Then water pumps were set-up om the farms by foreign organisations.

Sheikh Mahjoub Tabeldiya told Radio Dabanga that the farmers shut-down the water stations on the first of Ramadan (June 6) and refused to open them until they are compensated. This forced some of the displaced persons to walk several kilometres to get a tin of water.

Sheikh Tabeldiya said that they raised a complaint to the head of the commission of humanitarian aid, Jamal Yousef, who instructed the farms to open the water stations but by Tuesday, they had still not complied.