KHARTOUM: A tense calm fell Tuesday on Sudan’s Darfur region after days of inter-ethnic violence claimed at least 155 lives, left scores wounded and displaced tens of thousands, a tribal leader and a regional official said.
The transitional government in the capital Khartoum sent troops to the remote region where the end of a joint United Nation and African Union peacekeeping mission has raised fears of more bloodshed.
Violence erupted on Saturday in El Geneina, the capital of West Darfur, killing at least 100 people and wounding more than 130, said the state governor, Mohamed Abdalla al-Douma.
The clashes between Arab nomads and members of the non-Arab Massalit ethnic group led around 50,000 people to flee areas in and around a camp for internally displaced people (IDP) who were driven from their homes in previous conflicts, said the aid group Save the Children.
Authorities in West Darfur have imposed a statewide curfew as troops arrived there from Khartoum and other states to restore order.
“There have been no clashes since Sunday, but there were incidents of looting, especially of houses and farms of people living at the Kerindig IDP camp,” Douma told AFP.
“The situation is calm in the state as security forces have spread in and around the city of El Geneina and Kerindig.”
Separate clashes broke out Monday in South Darfur between members of the Fallata ethnic group and the Arab Rizeigat tribe, leaving at least 55 people killed and 37 wounded.
Tribal leader Mohamed Saleh told AFP by phone that “the situation is calm today in our village in South Darfur. There are no clashes. People are however tense, fearing the renewed outbreak of violence.”
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