Four people killed in West-Taweisha

Unknown number of children reported as missing following attack by Popular Defense Forces.

Four people were killed and an unspecified number of children went missing in an attack on one of the areas of Korea, West-Taweisha on Sunday afternoon. Witnesses from the area told Radio Dabanga that members of the Popular Defense Forces (PDF) were behind the attack, adding that they were riding vehicles, horses and camels. According to them, the incident started with heavy shootings towards the citizens, resulting in the deaths of Mohammed Zakaria Bush, Abdulla Ibrahim Eissa, Juma Abakr and Idriss Ahmed Abdulla, in addition to the loss of an unknown number of children. The assailants apparently also robbed the people of their properties after the attack. A survivor told Radio Dabanga that the area’s residents have been displaced to other neighborhoods within Taweisha, seeking safety.

In relation with the attack, militia affiliated to the Popular Defense Forces were reported as having arrested and detained sheikh Babiker Mukhtar Ali for 15 days. Sources from the region told Radio Dabanga that the sheikh had been tortured during his arrest, and that the militia imposed a 5-million-pounds fine on him before asking him to leave the area. The sources added that the militia had previously arrested Jamal Mohammed Juma, a high-school student, while he was on his way back from El-Fasher last week. Jamal, who currently resides in Azban, was apparently beaten up and tortured. His current whereabouts remain unknown.