Dozens killed in Sudan tribal clashes

KHARTOUM, Sudan (AA) – Sudan said Saturday that 31 people were killed in tribal clashes in the Blue Nile state near the border with Ethiopia.

The clashes between Hausa and Birta tribes erupted in the town of Damazin on Friday and spread to other areas in the state on Saturday.

The violence was triggered by the killing of a farmer in the town of Gaisan in the state.

“The clashes led to the death of at least 31 people and the injury of 39 others, while dozens of shops were burnt down,” the security committee of the Blue Nile state said in a statement.

Local authorities declared a state of emergency in the state and imposed a curfew in the towns of Damazin and Rosairis from 6:00 pm to 6:00 am in an effort to stem the violence.

Military forces backed by the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces were also deployed in the area to bring the situation under control.

Sudan has seen several bouts of tribal violence in Darfur, South Kordofan, and Blue Nile regions in recent months amid a deep political crisis in the country since the military dismissed Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok’s transitional government, a move decried by political forces as a “military coup.”