Oil exploration suspended in Zarga Um Hadid, East Darfur

Oil exploration in the northern part of East Darfur has been suspended because of tribal conflicts over landownership in the area. The Chairman of the parliamentary Committee of Economic Affairs, Salem El Safi Hijeir, told the press on Thursday that the oil exploration in the field of Zarga Um Hadid, located in the northern part of East Darfur, was suspended by the company because of security reasons. “The Hamar and Ma’aliya tribes are contesting the ownership of the area.” “The production of oil in the Um Hadid field is continuing despite tribal conflicts over the ownership of the field”, Hijeir explained. He announced that a reconciliation conference between the Hamar and Ma’aliya tribes will be convened “in the coming days” on the ownership of the lands in which the Zarga Um Hadid field is located. File photo by H. Sharif