Sudanese authorities have sent security reinforcements to the South Darfur region (west) following renewed inter-communal fighting in the area over the past few days, which has left around a dozen people dead.
The governor of the state, Hamid al Tijani Hanun, stressed that stability will be guaranteed in the area and emphasized that the deployment has been ordered by the South Darfur Security Committee, as reported by the Sudanese state news agency SUNA.
He also emphasized that the authorities are working to provide humanitarian aid to those displaced and affected by the incidents and pointed out that there are ongoing contacts with the parties through a reconciliation mechanism to try to reduce tensions.
The head of the South Darfur Police, Mohamed Ahmed Abullah al Zein, detailed that 400 officers have been deployed in the affected areas to try to arrest those involved in the fighting and support civilians to return to their places of origin once the situation stabilizes.
The authorities have confirmed the death of nine civilians and two military personnel in the fighting, which has also left 18 wounded. Dozens of people demonstrated on Friday in the town of Nyala to denounce the growing insecurity and the upsurge in inter-communal clashes.
The Darfur region has been the scene of a spike in inter-communal tensions despite a landmark October 2020 peace deal with several rebel groups, which seeks to end fighting that erupted in 2003, leaving at least 300,000 dead and more than 2.5 million displaced.
Former President Omar Hassan al-Bashir — overthrown in a coup d’état in April 2019 — as well as other senior officials during his tenure, are wanted by the International Criminal Court (ICC) for alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity in the context of this conflict.
Source: (EUROPA PRESS)
