Sudanese army, rebels clash in North Darfur town

October 26, 2013 (KHARTOUM) – The Sudan Armed Forces (SAF) and rebel Sudan Liberation Movement-Abdel Wahid (SLM-AW) clashed in Mellit town in North Darfur, as the two sides claimed inflicting casualties on each other.

The SLM-AW spokesperson Abdel Rahim Nimir said in a statement issued on Saturday they took the control of Mellit town on Friday where they killed 16 militiamen and captured a number of vehicles loaded with weapons and ammunition.

The rebel spokesperson said their fighters evacuated the town on Saturday. He added that the enemy offered little resistance but however said they lost two combatants.

In Khartoum, SAF spokesperson Al-Soamari Khaled in a statement issued on Saturday evening said they killed five rebels during a pursuit to recover two vehicles the rebels had captured after ambushing a 10- soldiers patrol, two kilometres outside Mellit.

The military spokesperson did not speak about casualties among the army troops but said they recovered one vehicle.

He added that the army continue to chase the assailant rebels, stressing that the rebel attack took place outside the town.

Mellit, which is located 80km north to the North Darfur capital Al-Fasher , remained relatively calm during the ten year conflict in Darfur.

But in August 2012 the area witnessed tribal clashes between the Arab tribe of Al-Ziyadiah who had refused to take part in the counterinsurgency campaign and Berti militias.

(ST)