Nyala – Darfur 24
The bloody war between the Beni Halba and Salamat tribes, which has been taking place in several areas of South Darfur State, has left hundreds dead and wounded besides the tragic humanitarian situation, leading to the displacement of thousands of families from the two tribes that had coexisted for hundreds of years.
Displacement :
The Humanitarian Aid Commissioner for South Darfur, Saleh Abdel Rahman, told Darfur 24 that the conflict caused the displacement of more than 10,000 people on both sides from the areas of Kambum, Markandi and Dambar, in addition to many villages located in southern and central Darfur States.
Members of Salamat tribe have fled to Al-Salam locality near the state capital, Nyala, and the “Um Dukhun and Kabar” areas in Central Darfur, while families from Beni Halba clan headed south to the Rahid Al-Bardi locality.
Saleh explained that the areas of “Abu Ajoura, Bulbul Timbsko, Bulbul Dalal Ankara” received more than 5,000 people from the Salamat tribe, and no services were provided to them by national and international organizations due to the insecurity in state of South Darfur caused by the ongoing conflict between the Army and RSF.
While the Executive Director of Rahid Al-Bardi Locality, Zakaria Angabo, told Darfur 24 that more than 5,000 people affiliated with Bani Halba tribe arrived in the city of Rahid Al-Bardi, 163 kilometers west of Nyala, the capital of South Darfur.
He added, “The displaced people are living in a bad situation, as shelter centers in schools and government institutions lack the minimum necessities of life.”
Angabo has appealed for the intervention of national and international organizations to provide urgent humanitarian aid to the newly arrived IDPs.
“Othman Musa,” one of the Salamat’s leading figures who grew up with his family in the Markundi area, says that they were evaluated after the attack on the city of “Kabum” on the fourth of August to the Umm Dukhun locality on the border with the state of Chad. He added: “We were evaluated with the help of the Markundi residents after it became dangerous for us to remain in the area. We didn’t take anything with us, but we left everything behind.”
It’s to be noted that Beni Halba, Salamat, Fur and Misseriya tribes had been peacefully and stably coexisting in Markundi area, but after the conflict that occurred between the Misseriya and Salamat tribes in recent years, most of the families from the two tribes left the area, while others remained.
Eyewitness Adnan Sharaf al-Din says that following the latest attack on the city of Kabum a number of families from the Salamat tribe were evacuated from “Markandi” to the town of “Um Dukhun” in the state of Central Darfur after their exit was secured by members of the Bani Halba tribe.
Causes of the conflict:
Community leader of Bani Halba tribe, “ named Ahmed Ali Muhammad Mahmoud, says that the reasons for the conflict between the two Arab tribes are that on the fourth of last August, armed men from the Salamat tribe on a “Land Cruiser” vehicle entered the house of a renowned Bani Halba tribal leader called Ibrahim Al-Bashari, and looted a car belonging to the local police that parked at the residence of the tribal leader. As soon as the news reached Bani Halba tribe men , they traced the looters, killed three of them and returned the looted police vehicle.
He added: After recovering the car, the two sides mobilized thousands of fighters, young and old, and exchanged attacks, which led to the killing and wounding of more than 320 people and the burning of a number of towns and villages, including the towns of Kabum and Markandi as well as the surrounding villages.
Meanwhile, activist from the Salamat tribe, Salem al-Nu, told Darfur 24 that the conflict began with an individual criminal incident in which a member of the Beni Halba tribe, affiliated with the Rapid Support Forces( RSF), conspired with members from Salamat tribe and looted a police car parked inside Ban Halba tribal leader’s residence .
He added: “This situation was interpreted incorrectly by the Beni Halaba people and eventually targeted Salamat tribe ,turning it from an individual incident into a war between the two tribes.
Why did reconciliation efforts fail?
Several attempts have been made to end the fighting between the Beni Halba and the Salamat since it broke out at the beginning of last August, following the attack on the city of Kabum.
Upon hearing news of the tribal conflict between the two large Arab tribes, RSF field commanders in Khartoum, rushed to Darfur to hold a reconciliation conference at the end of last August, which was signed by the brother of the Beni Halba supervisor chief Dr. Mahdi Dabaka, and the brother of one of Al-Salamat leading figures Dr. Khalil Abdullah Hassan.
RSF reconciliation official, Colonel Musa Ambilo, told Darfur 24 that the agreement stipulated the cessation of hostilities between the two parties, the reopening of markets, the payment of blood money, and the return of life between the two tribes to normal.
But after only three days from the signing of the deal, armed men from the Salamat tribe attacked villages belonging to the Beni Halba, destroying the recently signed peace agreement.
After that leaders of the native administration in the South Darfur State intervened and succeeded in pressing the waring parties to sign a document to stop hostilities between the two rival tribes in the Mukjar town of central Darfur state, but all these efforts failed.
Activist , Salem Al-Nu regretted the failure of the efforts to reconcile the two tribes, and called on the native administrations to intervene again to stop the fighting. .
Meanwhile, a member of the reconciliation committee , Mayor Yacoub Adam Issa, expressed his remorse that the two parties did not respect the outcomes of the “Mukjar” document.
He said that some members of the Salamat tribe violated the reconciliation and launched an attack on the Markundi area ,less than two weeks from signing the agreement.