Blue Nile: Inter-tribal conflicts leave hundreds killed, injured and displaced

(1 August 2022) Between 15 and 17 July 2022, Sudan witnessed new pattern of violence that can to some extent be compared to the incidents of what happened in Rwanda in 1994. A tribal conflict broke out in Blue Nile, a state bordering South Sudan and Ethiopia, between members of Fong and Hausa tribes. The incident resulted into the killing of 106 Hausa people, 9 Fongs, 8 Fulanis, and 1 Arab Hemida. There were also allegations of rape of 20 women and girls from Hausa tribe and displacement of approximately 14,000 people belonging to Hausa tribe. On 16 July 2022, a curfew decree was announced by Gen Ahmed Alomda Badie, the governor of Blue Nile as a measure to contain the conflict.[1] Despite the curfew, eyewitnesses saw several people belonging to Fong tribe accessing the weapons and ammunition store at central reserve police headquarters located in the East of Al-Rusairis town on 16 July 2022. The weapons obtained were used to attack the Hausa people.

ACJPS condemns inter-tribal attacks in Sudan and calls on:

Sudanese authorities to:

• Officially and publicly condemn these inter-tribal attacks, unlawful killings and injury and make it clear that these acts are absolutely prohibited, and perpetrators will be held to account.
• Launch an independent and impartial investigation into the circumstances of the killing and injuring and guarantee that their findings are published promptly and within a clear timeframe. This investigation should also address conflict-related sexual gender-based violence.
• To immediately prioritize the protection of civilians in all states across Sudan. Put in place tightened restrictions on the use and supply of arms and ammunitions, and a concerted effort to control arms and ammunition in the region should be launched, as well as controls over the use of ammunition and the presence of militias and weapons in public places.
• Ensure that police and law enforcement officers are deployed in the area to ensure security.

ACJPS further calls on the international community to prioritize the protection of civilians and security situation in Blue Nile and deploy resources to ensure the protection of civilians in the region and assist with independent and impartial investigations of human rights violations with an aim of ensuring accountability.

In the first week of May 2022, a group of seven Hausa members started a campaign advocating for the ban Hausa girls from working as house helps, an activity that employs several Hausa people besides agriculture. A group of Hausa girls reported to Mr. Al-Fatih Hassan Adlan, the head of Native Administration (NA) in Blue Nile Region and tribes in Blue Nile Kingdom. The campaign however, had a political motivation as it involved some Hausa leaders affiliated with National Congress Party (NCP) namely, Mr. Mohamed Noor Eldlien, the community leader of Hausa in Blue Nile and a former state minister in the previous regime; a Rapid Support Forces (RSF) officer and four other members of NCP.

The seven Hausa members launched another campaign against Mr. Adlan when he attempted to intervene in the matter and started promoting hate speech against him by saying that he doesn’t deserve to be head of native administration as he is not originally from any of the Blue Nile indigenous groups. On 8 June 2022, Mr. Adlan filed a case of disturbing of public peace under article 69 of Sudanese Penal Code 1991 at Al-Rusairis Police Station against Mr. Noor Eldein. Mr. Noor was arrested and later released conditionally after a protest by Hausa youth who stormed the police station demanding for his release.

After this incident, there was proposal by Mr. Obied Mohamed Suleiman Abu Shotal, the community leader of Hamag tribe to end the historical misunderstanding between himself and Mr. Adlan. The conflict was inherited from previous heads of the tribes, that is to say, the pervious Head of Maks and previous community leader of Hamag, Mr.Abu Shotal, also known as Omda. The Hamag tribe believe that the current Blue Nile region should be under supervision of Hamag Native Administration and that Mr. Hassan Adlan’s power should concentrate in Senar area currently known as Senar State. The outcome of Mr. Abu Shotal’s initiative was the recognition of Mr. Adlan as head of Maks and head of Native Administration of all tribes in Blue Nile.

The settlement between the two leaders aimed at uniting the tribes as Fong Native Administration. This was reflected in the recommendations of the conference held in Blue Nile between 28^th and 30^th May 2022. However, the members of Hausa tribe were absent at the conference. The conference was attended by state minister for agriculture in Blue Nile, Mr. Zaid Isa Zaid and Gen. Ahmed Almoda Badie, the governor of Blue Nile Region. Mr. Obied Mohamed Suleiman Abu Shotal read the recommendations of the three days conference.

During the conference, they discussed the campaign against employment of Hausa women as house helps/domestic workers. They also discussed powers of Native Administration in punishing law breakers since the legal system/office of the prosecutor dropped the charges against the Hausa leaders. In summary, it was agreed at the conference that the Hausa tribe abuses and do not have respect for Blue Nile community leaders/Native Administration. Some of the recommendations generated at the conference include among others a call for the cancelation of Hausa native administration, cancellation of National identifications of Hausa tribesmen and women, eviction of Hausa people from Blue Nile region and grape lands, and that Native Administration should approve any rental agreement of farms lands to Hausa people.

The growing tensions between community leaders created friction on the ground among the locals. An example is an incident on 8 July 2022 when two members of Barta tribe (under Fong group) were killed on their farm in Bakuri village neighboring Al-Rosuiris.  The Barta accused the Fulani tribe of committing the murders. Members of Barta, joined by Hamag tribe, armed with weapons moved looking for perpetrators. When they reached Bakuri and  Gunius areas, South of Al-Rosuiris, they met a group of Hausa people. A confrontation that ensued led to the killing of three people from Barta and Hamag tribes and two people from Fulani tribe.

In another incident on 10 July 2022, an armed group from Hamag tribe launched an attack on Gisaan Market resulting in to the killing of 20 businessmen including 5 Fulanis. No investigation was carried out by the authorities into this incident.

On 14 July 2022, a soldier from Hamag tribe was shot dead by one of his colleagues at local cinema. The suspect fled the crime scene, however, the Hamag believed that the the killer belonged to Hausa tribe.

On 15 July 2022, several Hamag and Barta men armed with automatic guns, sticks, iron bars and other sharp objects like axes launched an attack on Hausa members in Gunius area in Al-Rosuiris. According to an eyewitness, there were Police officers and Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) officers dressed in plain clothes who arrested some perpetrators. The confrontation resulted to the killing of at least 25 Hausa people, some of whom are still unidentified, 4 Fongs and one Fulani.

The following day on 16 July 2022, members of Hamag and Barta tribe launched another attack on Hausa in Gunius area of Al-Rosuiris resultantly killing at least 22 people from Hausa tribe and 4 from Fong and one from Arab Hemida. The Police and other regular forces didn’t intervene.

On the same day, the Hausa tribesmen launched a counterattack on Fong people in Guanis area which resulted to the killing of tens of people from Hausa and 5 from Fong. Because the forces had withdrawn to SAF headquarter, Fong tribesmen were able to access the ammunition store at central Reserve Police  in Al-Rusairis.

On 26 July 2022, Gen. Ahmed Alomda, the Blue Nile governor addressed the incident in a meeting with group called peace initiative that approached him with social peace proposal. He said in his address that the forces were withdrawn and stopped from intervening in the attack because their intervention would have led to a massacre.

In a separate incident on 17 July 2022, several Hausa tribesmen and women in Kasala state, East Sudan protested peacefully against the constant targeting of Hausa people in Blue Nile. They closed the bridge linking the East and West town of Kasala for 20 munities before re-opening and moving back peacefully. The following day, a big number of Hausa people continued protesting while armed with axes and sharp objects in Kasala. They closed the same bridge thus forcing Police forces to intervene by using teargas to disperse the armed crowd. The attempt failed because the number of protesters was too big. The crowd proceeded to deliver their message to acting governor of Kasala but he refused to meet them. On 25 July 2022, a team of Central Reserve Police from Khartoum arrived in Kasala and started investigations into the matter and later arrested 4 members of Hausa tribe as suspects in previous incidents.

At national level, the Security and Defense Council which falls under Transitional Sovereign Council issued a communication on 18 July 2022 in which it stated that there will be rapid response to humanitarian situation and to survivors in Blue Nile. It also called upon both parties to stop any hostile activities.  It noted that substances forces from Khartoum would provide reinforcement to local security agencies to ensure peace. Office of the Attorney General of Sudan was asked to carry out investigations. However, the Sudanese Liberation Peoples Army –North Sector has not intervened in the clashes because since 22 May 2022, they have been integrating their forces as required under the Sudan Peace Agreement 2022 (SPA) also known as “Juba Agreement”.

Through its monitors, ACJPS tried to analyze the root causes of these conflicts in Blue Nile. The main drive was very much political and thirst for power control in the region especially after Juba Agreement that provided a power sharing clause that gives a bigger share to SPLM-NS and 30% on executives and legislation. This raised conflict with Native Administration. What intensified the tension was that the spokesperson of Native Administration was affiliated with another SPLM-NS fraction led by Gen. Abdul Aziz Adam El Hello. In 2017, there were massive clashes between both movements in areas of Yaboos in Blue Nile region.

Another reason is reflected in the silent grudge by the Fong leader against the Fulani and Hausa. This is because Fulani and Hausa are active cattle keepers, agriculturist, traders, and fishermen thus making them to be one of wealthiest group in the Blue Nile Region. Fulani tribe is also more armed compared to other tribes. This only means they are more developed than others.

Key to note is the strong similarity between West Darfur state and Blue Nile Region. The Native Administration in both states depended on costmary law inherited from previous Kingdoms before the modern Sudan State. Blue Nile Kingdom is led by Fong Leaders known as Maks while West Darfur is led by Leaders known as Sultan. They both have authority over all tribes under their kingdoms and boarders. Native Administration is still functional because the land ownership still depends on it in both areas. It has even become more important because of wide activities of gold mining since 2010.

There have been incidents of insecurity in both states. In Kirinding IDP camp in West Darfur State, during the transitional period, many groups armed themselves because of insecurity in the area during the tenure of the acting military governor appointed by Omar AL Bashir in February 2019. Secondly, there were several incidents of killings, rape, and looting in krinding IDP camp in 2021, Krinik locality in 2022, Kulbus Locality in 2022 some of which resulted from dispute over land ownership between the nomads and farmers.  In several incidents in both Blue Nile and West Darfur, there have been a series of questions, that is, the absence of regular armies because they are either ordered to withdrew or not to intervene and the  establishment of investigation committees by office of the Attorney General that do not update the public about the outcome of the investigations. In addition, there are no cases forwarded to the judiciary for prosecution. There have also been displacements of people in both West Darfur and Blue Nile. The statement made by Mr. Abu Shotal, leader of the Hamag tribe under the umbrella of Fong group raises serious concerns as it exceeded the powers of Native Administration authorities and can be categorized as hate speech since it intended to mobilize people against SPA 2020 and created space of violating the constitutional rights of Hausa people.

Names people killed from Hausa tribe

1. Ibrahim Isa Ibrahim (m)
2. Kamal Mohamed Thani.
3. Abakar Idris Musa Funge
4. Hussien Daoud Mohamed
5. Osman Abdul Rahman
6. Alnaiem Hussein Noah
7. Alnzier Mukhtar
8. Mohamed Al- Thalth Mustafa
9. Eltahir Rabih
10. Musa Adam Hassan
11. Ibrahim Eisa
12. Izz Eldien Rabih
13. Alnoor Mohamed Ali
14. Osman Abakar
15. Osman Hussien
16. Awad Luani.
17. Ali Hafiz
18. Elshiekh Eltahir
19. El Sheikh Ismail
20. Eltahir Shuaib
21. Eltahir Mohamed Hussien
22. Saleh Yassien.
23. Yousef Abdul Rahman Hassan.
24. Ibrahim Isa Haroun
25. AsiemI Ibrahim
26. Abdallah Ibrahim Isa
27. Ahmed Mohamed
28. Yagoup Hussien
29. Khalid Alnoor Mohamed Ali
30. Saleh Mustafa
31. Eltahir Alshuaib
32. Mohamed Alnasir Ibrahim
33. Musa Atta
34. Abdallah Mohamed Omer
35. Mohamed Yousef Mukhtar
36. Abakar Mohamed
37. Mohamed Hafiz
38. Osman Abdul Rahman
39. Omer Abamar Omer
40. Abakar Ahmed.
41. Elnoor Mohamed Ali.
42. Mohamed Zakary.
43. Hussien Daoud Salah
44. Abakar A hmed Idris
45. Ali Habib Noah.
46. Izz Eldien Rabih Khalil
47. Ibrahim Issa Ramadan
48. Mohamed Nassir Ibrahim (m)
49. Aied Adam Khamis (m) Hausa
50. Mohamed Althalith Mustafa Mohamed Ibrahim (m)
51. Hussein Youssef (m)
52. Ali Habiba Noor (m)
53. Ismail Adam Ahmed (m)
54. (20) unidentified dead bodies from Hausa tribe

Names of people Killed from Fong tribe

1. Abdul Bari Hassan Suleiman(m) Fong
2. Murtada Abdul Haliem Ahmed(m) Fong
3. Mohamed Abdullah Elteyeb(m) Fong
4. Mujaheed Abdul Abdul Aal (m)Fong
5. Unidentified dead body for a member of Fong
6. Eltahir Hamza Zakaria (m) Fong
7. Nadir Hussein Youssef (m) Fong
8. Juma Sabiet Nile(m) Fong

Names of  Fulani tribesmen killed

1. Ali Mohamed Youssef (m)

2. Ammber Killed from Arab Hemidia

3. Sidiq Abdul Salam Ali (m)

Names of people arrested in Kasala

1. Waleed Izz Eldien (m)
2. Abdul Wahaab Abu Nabiah (m)
3. Mawia Rabih (m)
4. Sabier Daoud (m)

 

 

 

 

[1] He was former military leader to forces of Sudanese people liberation Army in Blue Nile. After the split of the movement in 2017, he became the commander of Blue Nile Forces under Mr. Malik Agar leadership as chairperson. He was appointed as governor under power of Sudan Peace Agreement 2020.