40 people killed in fresh inter-communal violence in West Darfur
April 5, 2021 (KHARTOUM) – 40 people have been killed in fresh clashes intercommunal clashes in West Darfur state, said a UN office for humanitarian coordination (OCHA) in El Geneina on Monday.
Reports from the West Darfur capital confirmed the tribal fighting when identified gunmen killed two Massalit and wounded two others who were heading to El-Geniena on Saturday 3 April.
“Since 4 April, gunfire has been reported in Hay Al Jabal and Al Jamarik neighbourhoods. The Government’s Humanitarian Aid Commission reports that 40 people have been killed and 58 injured,” said OCHA in a statement released on Monday.
The Sudanese authorities did not dispatch troops to stop the fighting despite the important force deployed in the state after the previous tribal clashes.
No official statement has been issued on the inter-communal attacks, only a doctors’ local committee said 18 people were killed as a result of the fighting.
However, a declaration of the state of emergency was announced in Khartoum by the national security council after a meeting on Monday.
The official news agency said the State Governor would hold a press conference on Tuesday. Mohamed al-Doma has been accused of being involved in the violence.
OCHA said the situation remains tense between the Massalit and Arab and both groups are mobilizing forces.
The tribal violence between the Arab tribes and Massalit in mid-January displaced over 108,000 people in the state.
In a short statement released on its Facebook page on Monday, the European Union delegation in Khartoum expressed deep concern about the new wave of violence in West Darfur.
“The EU in Sudan is very much concerned by the recent escalation of the violence, and awaits all components of the transitional government to do their utmost to stop the violence,” said the statement
The statement further pointed out that six months after the peace agreement in Juba civilian in West Darfur continue to be killed and the same painful scenes of burning houses, dead and wounded people were repeated.
(ST)