Sudan has seen an upsurge in tribal clashes in recent weeks that has led to the deaths of at least 59 people with over 100 others wounded. The clashes have been putting pressure on the already fragile transitional government that came into power after the ousting of former leader President Omar al- Bashir.
In the latest inter-ethnic violence, 30 people were killed in clashes on May 7 between the Arab Rizeigat tribe and the Falata, who trace their roots to western Africa, sparked by a dispute over livestock. A few days later, three people died, 79 were wounded and several homes were burnt down in violence between members of the Bani Amer and Nuba tribes in the eastern city of Kassala, near Sudan’s border with Eritrea. Other lethal confrontations left 26 people dead and 19 injured on May 13 in Kadugli, the capital of South Kordofan province.
While the transitional government continues to seek lasting peace solutions, the conflict is far from in is further fuelled by the fact that clashes ate moving from local villages to urban areas and the ability to purchase weapons thanks to a thriving cross-border arms trade with Ethiopia and Eritrea.
