Otoro leaders accuse SPLM-N of killing eight detainees in Nuba Mountains
September 27, 2026 (HEIBAN) – Traditional leaders of the Otoro community in Sudan’s Nuba Mountains on Sunday accused forces affiliated with the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement-North (SPLM-N) of killing eight detained community members and arresting two education officials.
The accusations follow weeks of mounting friction in Heiban County between the SPLM-N’s military wing, the Sudan People’s Liberation Army-North, and local Otoro fighters, after violent clashes erupted in Kauda and surrounding areas throughout August and September.
SPLM-N forces regained control of Kauda in August following confrontations with Otoro fighters, after which movement leader Abdelaziz al-Hilu ordered a cessation of hostilities in Kauda and Heiban to facilitate mediation efforts.
In a statement, the Otoro tribal leadership said SPLA-N forces executed eight Otoro detainees on Sept. 23 while they were being held at the Mandi detention facility.
The statement identified the deceased as Faisal Mousa, Ayoub Malak Louja, Koko Abdelaziz Bashir, Ayoub Awad al-Amin, Kamal Idris Al-Yaqa, Mustafa Awad al-Karim Owlanga, Omar Bourjou, and Salah Hassan.
The leadership also said that SPLA-N troops detained two other Otoro men from civil authority offices in Um Dulu while on duty, naming them as regional education administration secretary Daniel Ibrahim Koko and education officer Khalid Osman Nabari.
The community leadership demanded an urgent independent investigation into the killings, the immediate disclosure of the whereabouts of the two detainees, and accountability for those responsible for unlawful detentions and summary executions.
It also called for an end to measures that endanger civilian lives or fracture communal cohesion across Heiban County and the broader Nuba Mountains.
Heiban County has seen sharp tensions stemming from local inter-communal disputes that escalated into armed confrontations, while regional and traditional leaders seek to broker de-escalation to prevent wider violence across South Kordofan.