Qureida, September 21 (Darfur24)
At least 16 people have been killed and 23 injured in two days of renewed tribal fighting between Masalit and Fulani communities in Qureida, about 90 kilometers south of Nyala, South Darfur State, according to medical, police and local sources.
On Saturday, about 12 people were killed and dozens injured after a dispute between two people at a café escalated into fighting that spread to the Abuja market and surrounding neighborhoods.
A medical source told Darfur24 that the town’s hospital received four bodies and 23 wounded on Sunday after fighting resumed, bringing the reported death toll over the two days to at least 16. Some of the injured are in critical condition and require urgent surgery.
A Federal Police source in Qureida said armed men from the Fulani community launched attacks from the eastern and western sides of the town after a period of calm.
The source said Rapid Support Forces (RSF) intervened on Sunday night to separate the two sides, while the local administration also worked to calm the situation. Fighting resumed hours later despite an agreement by the two sides to maintain calm.
Residents reported heavy weapons and Kalashnikov fire in several parts of the town.
Sayyida Mahmoud, a Qureida resident, told Darfur24 that farmers from the Abdus area, about 10 kilometers north of Qureida, were also attacked. She said two brothers were killed on Saturday and their bodies were recovered and buried on Sunday.
She added that some shops in Abuja market reopened during a brief lull before clashes resumed around the town.
The latest violence follows a dispute that began in Abuja market and escalated into broader communal fighting. Residents said federal police and RSF forces initially struggled to contain the clashes as both sides mobilized.
The fighting comes amid worsening insecurity in parts of South Darfur, including armed robbery, killings, farmer-herder disputes, kidnapping and extortion.