Sudan army clashes with rebels in South Darfur

The Sudanese army battled two Darfur rebel factions yesterday, according to statements by the army and one of the factions. The Sudan Liberation Movement led by Abdelwahid Al Nur clashed yesterday with a brigade of the Sudanese army in the Jabra area, 50 kilometers northeast of Nyala. The faction’s military spokesman, Nimr Abdelrahman, claimed that the rebels defeated the government troops and forced them to flee. He told Radio Dabanga said that the SLA forces destroyed in battle 6 Land Cruisers and captured another 7 vehicles loaded with military equipment. He added that government forces were trying to cross from Jabra to Jebel Marra.

For its part, the Armed Forces acknowledged that a clash occurred in Darfur yesterday, but not with the faction of Abdel Wahed. Their spokesman explained that, on the contrary, the battle took place in Marshanag with the forces of the Justice and Equality Movement led by Ali Karbino. Lt. Col. Al Sowarmi Khaled Saad, spokesman of the Armed Forces, in remarks to Radio Dabanga said that the battle resulted in the killing of 13 from the rebels and 8 of the armed forces, in addition to the destruction of two vehicles belonging to the army. He elaborated that the army’s force consisted of two cars that were moving from site to site in the area of Murshanag. He said that this force was ambushed by a group belonging to the Justice and Equality led by a rebel named Karbino.

In another statement to the state news agency SUNA, Lt.-Col. Saad said the clash occurred on the Nyala-El Fasher road and lasted for four hours in the early hours of Friday. SUNA also said that the Minawi faction was involved in the battle alongside “a number of armed bandits.”