Dozens killed as violent tribal clashes erupt in Sudan's east Darfur, UN voices concerns

Dozens were killed and others injured when violent clashes erupted Monday between the Rezeigat and Ma'alia tribes in Sudan's East Darfur State, according to tribal leaders and eyewitnesses.

"Great numbers of armed members from the Rezeigat tribe attacked a number of Ma'alia areas in East Darfur State," Azraq Hassan, a leader from Ma'alia tribe, told Xinhua over phone from east Darfur Monday.

"Preliminary statistics indicate that 25 members of Ma'alia were killed," he said, adding that there are dozens of injured people, making it difficult to determine the number of casualties as the battle was still raging on.

"The assailants used RPG missiles and Katyusha rockets to attack our people. This is an organized genocide by one tribe against another," he added.

He went on saying that "we will settle our accounts with the Rezeigat and they will fail in their attempt to forcibly displace us from our land."

Meanwhile, eyewitness from Al Dein, capital of East Darfur, told Xinhua correspondents that shops and commercial stores in the city closed after clashes erupted at the locality of Abu Karinka, 50 km northeast of Al Dein.

East Darfur State Governor Al-Tayeb Abdel-Karim reportedly held an emergency meeting with the state's security committee to assess the consequences of the situation which portends disaster unless authorities manage to stop the fighting among the two tribes.

Earlier in the day, the governor said his state government sent substantial military reinforcement to secure the area to prevent an escalation of the situation.

Also on Monday the UN expressed deep concerns over the clashes.

"I am very concerned by this outbreak of fighting," said Geert Cappalaere, UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator in Sudan, in a statement.

"These towns are full of ordinary people, most of them women and children, who are just trying to live in peace. They should not have to carry the burden of renewed conflict", he noted.

He urged all parties to stop fighting immediately, exercise restraint to prevent further escalation, and support mediation efforts to resolve the underlying causes of this conflict by peaceful means.

The conflict between Rezeigat and the Ma'alia dates back to 1966 owning to land disputes. The conflict has later turned more violent after oil was found in the disputed areas.

The last clashes between the two tribes was in July 2014 which left over 600 persons dead and about 900 injured on both sides, while more than 55,000 others were displaced due to the fighting.

For years, all the official and popular efforts have failed to end the tribal conflicts, which have become a nagging concern for local population and the authorities of the troubled region.

The Darfur region has seen growing tribal violence as the local tribes could easily obtain weapons, while many parts of the area have no effective governance.

Darfur region lies on the far west region of Sudan with a total area estimated at around 500,000 square km. It is considered Sudan's western gate where the region shares joint borders with Libya, Chad and Central Africa Republic.

Tribes and clans are still the backbones of local economic, social and political institutions, while the people there still feed themselves through traditional grazing and rain-fed agriculture. Enditem