Nyala, December 15 (Darfur24)
At least 10 people were killed and more than 20 others injured in armed clashes between the Sa’ada and Ta’aliba tribes in the Al-Qardoud area of South Darfur, sources said on Sunday.
The fighting broke out on Wednesday in Al-Qardoud, about 86 kilometers northwest of Mershing locality, following the killing of a herder who had allegedly entered a farm. The incident quickly escalated as both sides mobilized armed relatives.
A Native Administration leader told Darfur24 that the wounded were transferred to hospitals in Nyala and nearby health centers for treatment.
A local official in Mershing said mediation by local administrations led to a reconciliation agreement that included payment of blood money, treatment of the injured, and a halt to the violence, which had spread to Kass city west of Nyala and included an attack on the locality’s executive director, Ahmed Azraq.
He added that intervention by the Rapid Support Forces helped contain the clashes, with a force deployed to separate the two sides until the end of the harvest season and prevent early grazing in farms.
Conflicts between herders and farmers regularly flare up in Darfur during the agricultural season over early livestock release, despite repeated agreements to regulate grazing routes.