Two killed in clashes between farmers and herders in North Darfur

November 10, 2015 (EL-FASHIR) – Two people were killed and six others injured Monday in clashes between farmers and camel herders in Amaray area in the locality of Kutum, North Darfur state.

Eyewitness told Sudan Tribune that a group of pastors entered their camels into the residents’ farms leading to damaging large amounts of the crops, saying 2 cattle herders were killed and 3 others injured while one farmer was wounded in the clashes which erupted between the two sides following the incident.

He added the farmers seized 85 heads of camels belonging to the pastors to compensate those whose crops were damaged.

The same source stressed that clashes between farmers and camel herders would continue unless the government of North Darfur takes strict security measures to prevent them, pointing to tensions among the tribes residing in Kutum locality.

He expressed fear that the crisis would exacerbates if the government didn’t address the incident quickly.

For the last two years, North Darfur has witnessed deadly clashes between Barti and Zayadia tribes.

The two tribes have given the governor of North Darfur, Abdel-Wahid Yossef a preliminary approval to hold a reconciliation conference to end the fighting and resolve their differences according to the local traditions and customs.

Tribal fighting has intensified in four of Darfur’s five states during the past two years leading to thousands of deaths and injuries and forcing over 300,000 people to flee their homes.

They are usually triggered by land disputes, pasture rights and fighting over water resources. More than 7,000 people were killed in those clashes since 2007.

(ST)