Security forces will be deployed in the Sudanese region of Darfur, the scene of tribal violence, to protect " citizens and the agricultural season ", Prime Minister Abdallah Hamdok announced on Sunday July 26.
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This decision comes after the increase in deadly violence, arising from the question of land between nomadic Arab tribes and farmers from African tribes in this region of western Sudan. At least twenty peasants were killed in South Darfur on Friday by gunmen as they returned to their fields after more than 15 years of absence, according to a local tribal chief.
" A joint security force will be deployed in the five states of Darfur to ensure the safety of citizens and (protect) the agricultural season " which lasts from July to November, the Prime Minister said in a statement after receiving a delegation of women from Darfur. This joint force will include members of the army and the police.
The peasants killed on Friday were allowed to return to their land after an agreement reached two months ago under the aegis of the government with those who had settled there during the conflict in Darfur.
Hundreds of thousands of dead
This conflict, which erupted in 2003 between the predominantly Arab regime of Omar al-Bashir and insurgents from ethnic minorities who consider themselves marginalized, has left hundreds of thousands of deaths and millions of displaced according to the UN. In recent years, it has waned in intensity, and in 2019, Omar al-Bashir was overthrown by the army under pressure from the streets.
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The new government, resulting from an agreement between the military and leaders of the protest, began talks in October 2019 for a peace agreement with rebel groups and thus put an end to the conflicts in the regions of Darfur, South Kordofan. and the Blue Nile.
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But endemic violence remains, especially in the agricultural region of Darfur, due to conflicts over land, according to Adam Mohammad, an expert in the region. " The question of land is one of the causes of the conflict and it remains because during the war, the peasants fled their lands and villages to go to camps and nomads replaced them and settled there ", he told AFP.
In early July, hundreds of Sudanese protested in Central Darfur State, calling on the government to ensure the security of their properties after several killings and looting.
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