RSF attempt to impose a peace on two feuding Arab tribes in South Darfur
Conflicting reports about the outcome of talks between the Salamat and Beni Halba
The Rapid Support Forces (RSF) announced that they succeeded in brokering a reconciliation between the Salamat and Beni Halba tribes, but an independent media outlet reported that in fact the peace talks between the tribes had failed.
The announced peace follows heavy fighting between gunmen of the two Arab tribes in Kubum in South Darfur, amid reports that RSF fighters had joined the fighting on both sides, albeit allegedly more on the side of the Beni Halba.
The RSF ranks include soldiers from both the Beni Halba and Salamat, as well as other Darfur Arabs.
A joint video statement by leaders of the two tribes and an RSF commander in South Darfur, Colonel Musa Hamed Ambilo, published August 15, framed the fighting as a distraction from the ongoing war between the Sudan Armed Forces and the RSF, accusing the army’s intelligence services of working to fuel the tribal conflict.
On the other hand, Darfur 24 reported August 15, “Mediation by local tribal leaders to bridge the gap between the warring Salamat and Beni Halba tribes have ended in failure… Sources expected that clashes would resume in an event that government and local community leaders didn’t intervene.”
The contradiction between these two reports suggests either that the agreement announced by the RSF was not comprehensive, or that the delegations that signed it were not representative. The two reports were published on the same day.
Families from the Salamat side have been fleeing to Um Dukhun, a town on the Sudanese side of the Chad-Sudan border.
Joint statement
Below is a partial translation of the joint statement announced by RSF on August 15.
In the name of God, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful
A joint statement from the Native Administration, and the youth and the leaders of the Beni Halba and Salamat tribes.
Allah says: "The Jews say, ‘Allah’s hand is tied up.’ Tied up be their hands, and cursed be they for what they say! No, His hands are wide open: He bestows as He wishes. Surely many of them will be increased in rebellion and unfaith by what has been sent to you from your Lord, and We have cast enmity and hatred amongst them until the Day of Resurrection. Every time they ignite the flames of war, Allah puts them out. They seek to cause corruption on the earth, and Allah does not like the agents of corruption." [Quran 5:64].
First of all, may God have mercy on the martyrs who were lost in this vicious war imposed by Satan and his collaborators on our dear people. This war in which were lost lives of civilians and thousands of soldiers of the Rapid Support Forces, Sudanese army and police forces. This war would not have taken place without racism and tribalism.
We call on those who ignited this war of oppression and injustice to listen to the call of the whole world in order to spare our people and our country more destruction of the offspring and plowing, to miss the opportunity for hidden conspiracies.
Bearing in mind that their intelligence services are working to distract from the central issue by fabricating tribal wars between the components of Darfur. They created clan and tribal strife. Now we know that malicious hands have extended to ignite strife between the two tribes in Kubum and its environs so that the pressure on their forces eases in Khartoum and the city of Nyala.
We, the undersigned, affirm that the tribes of Beni Halba and Salamat are brothers in religion, coexistence, territory, Sudan, and lineage. We are condemning what was committed by reckless youth according to the charter of the 88 tribes of Darfur, which called for renouncing violence and not responding to any conflict in the region. We thank the tribes of Salamat and Beni Halba, may peace and God's mercy be upon you.
This signing took place in the presence of the head of the Peace Committee of the Rapid Support Forces Colonel Musa Hamed Ambilo, and in the presence of the advisors Saeed Youssef Hamed Mahel, Al-Kanin Adam Al-Kanin, and the mediation committee, the representative Nazir Idris Youssef. The signatories included the delegation of Beni Helba, Emir Al-Hadi Ahmed Shanbat and Omda Sosal; and the delegation of the Salamat: Muhammad Zain, Omda Jibril Hassan Adam, and Dr. Khalil Muhammad Hassan Hammad.
The RSF commander Ambilo said, “We say to our people in Kubum we do not want any person to raise a stick or a gun against another person. We want you to return to marriage, to share the same blood, crops, and market.”
In brief
The Rapid Support Forces are restricting supplies into the Al-Fatihab neighborhood in Omdurman in a move possibly aimed at tightening the siege of the neighboring military area known as Corps of Engineers. The Al-Fatihab Resistance Committees issued a statement Wednesday, August 16, saying, “In a dangerous turn, the RSF militia prevented the delivery of life-saving medicines and necessary food commodities to the residents of the district, which led to a scarcity of many essential commodities such as flour, oil, and sugar. RSF militia also closed several markets and expelled their merchants and street vendors.” Prior to these for forced closures the RSF had been forcing vendors to pay levies.
The security committee in An Nahud Locality in West Kordofan State imposed a curfew and decided to ban the carrying of weapons, wearing of kadmol, and wearing military khaki by individuals who are not members of the regular forces, according to SUNA, the state-run news agency, which remains loyal to the Armed Forces. In a related development, authorities in Al Fula also in West Kordofan issued a decision banning nighttime gatherings.
The security situation in Al Fula in West Kordofan became very tense on Wednesday, August 16, after members of the SAF garrison allegedly killed three RSF members in the city who had returned from Khartoum after taking place in battles there. This led to threats against the Al Fula garrison.