Over 41 killed in West Darfur tribal clashes
December 31, 2019 (KHARTOUM) – At least 41 people were killed and 29 others injured as a result of inter-communal fighting, in the east of El-Geneina, the capital of West Darfur state.
Despite the relative stability in the region, the tribal violence -which was one of the causes of the conflict in 2003 – continues to take different forms.
The West Darfur clashes were caused by the death of a member of the Arab groups in El-Geneiena after a scuffle near Crendingue camp for displaced people from the Masslit tribe.
Asaad Bahr al-Din, a Massalit tribal leader said that the number of people killed in his tribe was at least 30 dead and about 14 were wounded.
He added that the death toll is not final, as they continue to receive reports about the causalities.
He told Darfur 24 on Tuesday that some bodies in the camp some of the camp’s dead – whose number is unknown – are still in the open and no one can approach the place.
“Some bodies are still in the open and have not been counted as no one can approach the places where they are,” he told Darfur 24, a local news media.
He further said hundreds of IDPs the areas adjacent to El Geneina fled into neighbouring Chad, fearing for their lives, while thousands run away to remote villages.
Reports from the areas say the gunmen have prevented the families of the victims from collecting the bodies and continued to open fire in the air.
For his part, the head of the Arab tribes, Massar Abdel-Rahman Assil, said that the dead among the death toll reached 11 people as of Tuesday morning from their side, in addition to 15 wounded.
Assil further said that Massalit youth, after the revolution, formed Resistance Committees (pro-democracy groups) and established security patrols around the camp and neighbouring markets.
Also, they classified the Arabs as supporters of the former regime, all these developments in addition to the previous disputes fuelled the current conflict, he stressed.
The Sudanese government decided on Monday to dispatch additional troops to prevent the deterioration of the security situation.
Also, Prime Minister Abdallah Hamdok and the Rapid Support Forces General Commander Mohamed Hamdan Daglo who is a member of the Sovereign Council will visit the area to inspect the security situation and to call for reconciliation.
(ST)