Unknown gunmen open fire at police station in North Darfur

June 28, 2016 (2016) – Unidentified armed group has opened fire on a police station in the locality of Saraf Umra, 258 km west of North Darfur capital, El-Fasher sparking tension among the residents.

The coordinator of Saraf Umra IDP’s camp Abdel-Razig Youssef told Sudan Tribune on Tuesday that the shooting occurred when relatives of a victim who died in a car accident opened fire at the perpetrator who took refuge in the police station.

The head of the Shura (consultative) committee of the Fur tribe in Saraf Umra Mohamed Ali Ahmed denied rumors that the area witnessed a looting incident, saying they sat with the victim’s family to resolve the issue within the framework of the traditional conflict resolution mechanisms.

He described the incident as “normal”, pointing that unnamed bodies seek to spark the fire of sedition by portraying the incident as a tribal conflict.

Earlier this month, gunmen riding a four wheel-drive vehicle had stormed the police station in Saraf Umra and freed four prisoners.

North Darfur state and particularly the capital, El-Fasher have witnessed a series of killing and looting incidents during the last three weeks.

On Monday, North Darfur governor Abdel-Wahid Youssef accused unnamed parties of seeking to keep the “insecurity and instability” situation in Darfur, and pointed to “hidden hands that prompt the security chaos in all Darfur’s five states not only North Darfur”.

(ST)