Category: General

At least 20 members of the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) have died during a clash with Ethiopian forces and militiamen, who reportedly ambushed them in the border area of El Fashaga El Soghra in El Gedaref. The SAF said in a statement that it inflicted “heavy losses of life” on Ethiopian troops and militiamen who attacked them.

In the statement yesterday, the SAF confirmed that a number of army officers and soldiers were killed during the clashes in the Barakat Noreen area. Sudanese forces responded to shelling and crossed the Atbara river, when they fell into the ambush.

Colonial border

The 1,600 kilometre border between Sudan and Ethiopia was drawn in colonial times. It has never been clearly demarcated since Sudan became independent. The lack of clear border markers has made it easy for Ethiopian militants to occupy fertile farmlands in eastern El Gedaref.

In El Fashaga locality, Ethiopian farmers have been cultivating crops for decades. The lands are protected by Ethiopian gunmen.

The border area has been the source of frequent clashes over the last two years. Reportedly, 700,000 acres of Sudanese agricultural land has been illegally appropriated by Ethiopian farmers since the 1960s.

Human traffickers

Sudan’s paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) reported the killing of three of its operatives, including a Caption, on Friday, as a result of violent clashes with what the RSF described as “unruly gangs that are active in smuggling and human trafficking in the Shafar Leit area in Sudan’s Northern State , where Sudan borders Egypt and Libya.

Source: Radio Dabanga

The Chadian authorities say that more than 12,000 Sudanese refugees, most of them children, women, and seniors, have arrived in the Wadi Barak area after fleeing the violence in attacks on villagers and nomads in Jebel Moon, West Darfur, during the past 10 days. Thousands of villagers fled to eastern Chad after their homes were burned to ashes. There are conflicting reports of exactly how many people were killed or injured in the violence.

Mohamed Aliyu, Acting Governor of West Darfur, announced that the clashes in Jebel Moon area resulted in the death of 24 people and the burning of eight villages. In a press statement yesterday, Aliyu explained that “thieves are the root of the problems”.

He said that the authorities were able to put an end to the Jebel Moon violence. He acknowledged the existence of security problems in North and West Darfur, perpetrated by those “taking advantage of the deteriorating security situation in Khartoum”.

The head of Rapid Support Forces (RSF) operations, Maj Gen Osman Hamid, numbered the dead in the Jebel Moon violence at 19. Gen Hamid also denied any involvement of RSF troops in the events.

The United Nations Office for Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) in Sudan said that initial reports indicate that at least 43 people were killed, 46 villages were burned and plundered, and several people went missing, including children.

The office alerted some humanitarian operations in the area due to security concerns. OCHA noted that security forces has allowed an interagency assessment to be conducted between November 29 and December 2 to determine needs and the type of response required.

Resistance committees active in the neighbourhoods of Khartoum, Nyala, El Fasher and other cities organised protest vigils on Sunday, condemning the violence that occurred in the Jebel Moon in West Darfur. The participants in the vigils carried banners denouncing the events and holding the authorities responsible for what happened due to the lack of security and the proliferation of weapons.

The participants in the vigils called on the authorities to provide security for the people throughout the country. A number of vigils demanded the arrest of the perpetrators and bring them to fair trials.

Source: Radio Dabanga

The office of international medical NGO Médicins Sans Frontières/Doctors Without Borders (MSF) in Ed Daein, capital of East Darfur, was plundered by gunmen at dawn on 19 November.

In a statement yesterday, MSF said that gunmen stormed the office at around 03:00 and threatened the office guards. A Toyota Land Cruiser bearing the organisation’s logo was stolen.

The organisation noted that the armed attack occurred two weeks after the plundering of a convoy of MSF vehicles traveling from Ed Daein to the Kario camp for South Sudanese refugees. A Land Cruiser was stopped and its passengers were beaten and threatened with weapons. Because of that incident, MSF said, an entire team was evacuated from Kario camp and MSF scaled back its services.

On Saturday evening, gunmen killed Abdelgadir Sharaf (35) on his farm in the area of Dankoj in Zalingei locality in Central Darfur.

Central Darfur camps coordinator El Shafee Abdallah told Radio Dabanga that the farmer, who lives in the Hamidiya camp in Zalingei, went to Dankoj to work his farm. Gunmen riding camels shot him after he resisted attempts to steal his crop by force.

The gunmen left the farmer seriously injured. He was transferred to the Dankoj health centre, where he later died of his injuries.

The body was taken to Zalingei to be buried in the Hamidiya camp cemetery, and the relatives of the dead man reported the incident to the police in Dankoj.

Abdallah noted the continued release of livestock by armed herders on farms in a number of areas in Central Darfur.

Source: Radio Dabanga

Sudan has released another batch of activists, politicians, and civil society leaders, held after the October 25 coup, however several remain in detention despite the clause in the political agreement signed in Khartoum last week by Gen Abdelfattah El Burhan and Sudan’s Prime Minister Abdallah Hamdok, that stipulates the release of all political detainees.

In a joint press statement at the weekend, the Sudan Troika countries (USA, UK, Norway), welcomed the release of more political detainees, and expressed their aspiration for the release of all of those detained for their political views across the country. The Troika considers this “a necessary step to rebuild confidence and return Sudan to the path of freedom and democracy”.

The authorities released politicians Khaled Omar, Sherif Osman, Governor of Khartoum Ayman Nimir, and journalist and Sudan TV staff member Maher Abuljoukh, and others on Saturday.

Reports from Sudan indicate that Sovereignty Council member Mohamed El Faki, Minister of Industry Ibrahim El Sheikh, leading member of the Forces for Freedom and Change Jaafar Hasan, spokesperson for the Empowerment Removal Committee Wajdi Saleh, and Judge Ismail El Naj and other detainees from the Empowerment Removal Committee, Resistance Committees, and other revolutionary bodies in Khartoum, Zalingei, and El Gedaref are still being held.

The Sudanese Congress Party on Saturday reported the release of its leading member Ibrahim El Sheikh, who was Minister of Industry when the coup took place, before he was re-detained by military forces and taken to an unknown destination.

Nureldin Babikr, the official spokesperson for the Sudanese Congress Party, holds the authorities responsible for the well-being of Ibrahim El Sheikh, all political detainees and the resistance committees, and called on all the forces of the revolution to participate in the Marches of the Millions planned for November 30, called for by the resistance committees in the capital and the various states.

Source: Radio Dabanga

A delegation from South Sudan’s Western Bahr El Ghazal State headed by the state minister of agriculture and food security Akwong Bwola visited the Wullu Honey Factory and Processing Site in Lakes State last Thursday.

Speaking to Radio Tamazuj during the exchange visit in Wullu County, Lakes State Minister of cooperatives and rural development Philip Taban Chier said the visit was aimed at sharing experiences and learning about the honey industry.

He said the visit was facilitated by the governments of Lakes and Western Bahr el Ghazala as well as the Food and Agriculture Organisation, FAO.

Akwong Bwola, the Western Baher el Ghazal agriculture minister and head of the delegation said: “The aim of the exchange visit is to see the Honey Procession Site and factory in Wullu County. We are very happy here in Wulu and we have seen your work both artificial and original works here in this honey factory in Wulu County by Oxfam. We have also heard and seen from you the challenges facing you and the way forward.”

Bwola added that this is only the first of such visits.

The head of the Food and Agriculture Organisation office said such visits are opportunities to learn honey production learn best practices and replicate that in other areas.

“So, I see opportunity in this visit that we going to have a good volume in the future that can be used in the region and beyond,” he said. “Next month, they will have other teams for exchange visits from USAID and other private sectors to come and see the Wulu Honey Association and honey processing and marketing so that they can be able to improve the marketing of honey and also to increase honey production.”

Okudi advised that collaboration with neighboring states such as Western Bahr el Ghazal would increase production and expand the market.

Source: Radio Tamazuj

At least one person was killed in a revenge attack at the Bentiu Protection of Civilian Site in South Sudan’s Unity State last Saturday.

Speaking to Radio Tamazuj on Monday, the deputy commander of the joint security forces Gatkhor Gatluak Bol said the late was identified as Gatkuoth Diar Dak.

Gatluak said the prime suspect, Yien Kuol Top, and his three brothers escaped from the camp since the incident.

“We are looking for them. We have information that those suspects have gone to Panakuac and we sent people to collect data. Even if they go to cattle camps, we will send people to collect them for investigation,” he added.

The chief administrator in the Bentiu PoC Bigoah Kuong confirmed that the cause of the killing was to avenge an earlier attack but said the situation was calm.

Moreover, Kuong said the situation in the camp encourages insecurity as the youth are idle.

“The root causes of these incidences are because the people are congested in one area. Secondly, there is a lack of employment in the IDPs camp and thirdly there is a need for opening a vocational training center so that the youth can be engaged to do something for their future. They are not doing anything, they are just roaming and therefore they are creating insecurity within the POC camp, that is the cause of these conflicts,” he concluded.

Source: Radio Tamazuj