Um Dafuq, October 13 (Darfur24)
The mediation committee tasked with reconciling the Ta’aisha and Kara tribes in the Central African Republic (CAR) has postponed the planned peace conference until Tuesday, October 14, according to committee officials.
The conference, originally scheduled for October 10, aims to resolve ongoing disputes between the two communities along the Sudan–CAR border.
A Native Administration official in Um Dafuq, South Darfur, who requested anonymity, told Darfur24 that a mediation team from Um Dukhun in Central Darfur announced the delay to allow more time for logistical arrangements and the transportation of tribal delegations.
He explained that the United Nations Mission in the Central African Republic (MINUSCA) is responsible for transporting the CAR delegation from Birao to Umm Dafuq, while a British organization is handling other logistical preparations.
Recent violence between the Ta’aisha and Kara tribes has heightened security tensions along the border, leaving around ten people dead and displacing hundreds of Sudanese families from CAR to the Umm Dafuq area.
The conference is set to take place as thousands of Sudanese herders prepare to cross into CAR on their annual migration in search of pasture and water.
The Native Administration has urged Sudanese farmers and herders traveling to CAR to avoid carrying weapons and to help prevent further security incidents ahead of the conference.
Late last month, MINUSCA and local forces reopened the Sudan–CAR border after it had been closed following intercommunal clashes.