Unity State: 13 killed in clashes between south Sudan army, Arab al-Misseriya tribesmen

13 people killed after fresh fighting between SPLA and Misseriya
Source: Sudan Tribune, Saturday 20 March 2010 - "Somebody somewhere is pushing them (the Misseriya). They have been used for many years," Kuol said.
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13 killed in clashes between south Sudan army, Arab tribesmen
Source: Xinhua, Friday, 19 March 2010:

Clashes erupted between south Sudan's army and armed Arab tribesmen on Wednesday in an oil- producing state, leaving at least 13 people dead, an army spokesman said Friday.

"These events took place on March 17 when an armed group of al- Misseriya tribe attacked the barracks of the south Sudan army in Unity state, south Sudan spokesman Kuol Diem told Xinhua.

"We stood up to the armed nomads and forced them to retreat," he said, noting that the confrontation left 11 tribesmen and two south Sudan soldiers killed.

Diem accused unnamed sides of inciting the al-Misseriya tribesmen to target the south Sudan army and create disorder.

"There might be political motives behind these frequent attacks, " he added.

The Arab al-Misseriya tribe, hailing from the western Sudanese region of Kurdufan, leaves their hometowns every summer in pursuit of grass and water for their cattle, taking a traditional route that is stretched to the disputed Abyei area on the borders between north and south Sudan.

After the end of a civil war five years ago, south Sudan authorities launched a campaign to disarm the people, and obligated al-Misseriya tribesmen not to bring in guns while crossing Bahr al-Arab area in the southwest during their annual march.

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Twenty more wounded from clashes in Zalingei
Source: Radio Dabanga, Friday, 19 March 2010:

ZALINGEI (19 Mar.) – Twenty persons were injured and transferred to Zalingei hospital after renewed clashes between the Misseriya and the Nuwayba in southeast Zalingei yesterday. A source told Radio Dabanga that six were seriously injured and were due to be transferred to Nyala for further treatment. The situation remained tense. There were reports of pillage, looting and destruction, the source added.

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Three SPLA Soldiers Killed in Clashes with Messiriya
Source: Sudan Radio Service, 17 March 2010:

Wednesday, 17 March 2010 - (Bentiu) - Three SPLA soldiers were killed and four others were wounded when Messiriya gunmen clashed with the SPLA in Abiemnhom, on the border of Abyei and Unity state on Friday.

The injured soldiers are receiving treatment in Abyei hospital.

SRS correspondent James Mabor Puot describes the incident.

[James Mabor Puot]: “The Messiriya were going towards the SPLA camp when they met SPLA soldiers who were on patrol and then they fought. The Messirya were not even moving with their cattle, they were armed with heavy guns. In the fight yesterday they overwhelmed the SPLA soldiers. When they met, both sides started shooting one another. Abiemnhom is the area where fighting between SPLA and Messiriya took place. Last week, there was a big meeting between the Messiryia leaders and the leaders of Unity state in which the Messiriya were asked to disarm when they travel in Unity state but they refused to be disarmed. They said they don’t even want SPLA soldiers at the border; they only want the police to be deployed there. But the government has yet to react.”

There were no indications of how many Messiriya were killed or injured in the incident.

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Stolen Oil
Source: Strategy Page, Friday, 19 March 2010 - excerpt:

March 12, 2010: The GOSS reported that a south Sudan military base in Unity state was attacked by a group of nomadic raiders. Three people were killed in the attack, two of them identified as Sudan Peoples Liberation Army (SPLA) soldiers. The attackers were from the Misseriya tribe, which is generally regarded as a pro-northern tribe. Unity state has oil fields. The GOSS is trying to limit the number of guns nomads (generally pastoralists herding cattle) can carry as they move their herds. The south's gun control initiative has caused some additional friction.

On Sat Feb 6: Seven killed in clashes between SPLA & Messiriya in Abiemnom, Unity state, S. Sudan

On Tuesday, 9 February 2010, Sudan Army Forces (SAF) spokesperson Lieutenant-Colonel al-Sawarmi Khalid denied that SAF had armed the Messiriya.

The spokesperson told SRS - Sudan Radio Service that: "It is illegal for the Messiriya to use SAF uniforms or equipment. There are Messiriya nomads who were recruited by the SPLA and they were given uniforms and military ranks and they started saying that they belonged to the SPLA and this caused a lot of problems".

SPLA spokesperson Kuol Diem Kuol also spoke to SRS about the attack. Mr. Kuol said that he thought the recent attack was a violent response on the part of the Messiriya to a civil disarmament campaign and that "the Messiriya want to come and graze by force in Unity State".

Full report here below.

Clashes Kill Eleven in Unity State
From SRS - Sudan Radio Service, Tuesday, 09 February 2010:

(Abyei/Khartoum/Juba) - Eleven people were killed during clashes between the SPLA and Messiriya tribesmen in Abiemnom county, in Unity state, last Saturday.

Speaking to SRS, community leader Bagat Makuec Abien accused the Sudan Armed Forces of arming the Messiriya.

[Bagat Makuec Abien]: “Eleven people have been killed. Eight soldiers and 3 civilians. The attackers of the SPLA camp were not nomads. They were militia from the Sudan Armed Forces.”

However, SAF spokesperson Lieutenant-Colonel al-Sawarmi Khalid denied that SAF had armed the Messiriya.

[Al-Sawarmi Khalid]: “The Sudan Armed Force refute these allegations. You should know that the Messiriya is just a normal tribe and everything is okay, this is all about grazing among the Messiriya people in Unity state. This is just a small problem at community level and the Sudan Armed forces cannot get involved. It is illegal for the Messiriya to use SAF uniforms or equipment. There are Messiriya nomads who were recruited by the SPLA and they were given uniforms and military ranks and they started saying that they belonged to the SPLA and this caused a lot of problems.”

SPLA spokesperson Kuol Diem Kuol also spoke to SRS about the attack.

[Kuol Diem Kuol]: “Six SPLA and one civilian were killed. 11 people were wounded; among the wounded were 8 SPLA, 2 children and one lady. From the side of Messiriya 8 bodies were found on the ground. This morning, the situation was normal, there was no more violence.”

Mr. Kuol added that he thought the recent attack was a violent response on the part of the Messiriya to a civil disarmament campaign.

[Kuol Diem Kuol]: “The SPLA is still disarming the civil population in south Sudan. So when the Messiriya came with the cattle to Unity state in December they were told to leave their guns in Messiriya land and come to graze, but they refused, so they clashed with the police in December. And when the SPLA went in, they also fired at the SPLA, wounding one SPLA soldier. I think they attacked our base, the SPLA battalion headquarters in Warping in Abiemnom county in retaliation. They attacked on 8 January, they attacked again on 23 January and the third attack was on 4 February. The Messiriya want to come and graze by force in Unity State.”

Kuol Diem Kuol was speaking to SRS from Juba on Monday [Feb 8].

Messiriya and Rezeigat tribes sign reconciliation agreement

Messairiya [aka Misseriya or Messiriya] and Rezeigat tribes Tuesday signed a reconciliation agreement in the presence of the Vice-President Ali Osman Mohamed Taha, the Walis (governors) of South Kordofan and South Darfur States and leaders of the two tribes.

Meanwhile, Taha said that the government wants the reconciliation agreement to contribute to boosting the national rank, unity of Sudan and the social peace. He called on the two tribes to help the state realize peace in the area.

Taha appreciated the step of South Sudan State's government of establishing a council of tribal sheikhs to contribute effectively to boosting the development process. He said that the reconciliation between Messairiya and Rezeigat reflected the peaceful co-existence among the people of Sudan and their elevation to the tolerance values.

Source: SUNA/Embassy of the Republic of the Sudan, Washington DC - Messairiya and Rezeigat Sign Reconciliation Agreement - Oct. 29, 2009.

South Sudan: Abyei MP Arop Madut accuses Messiriya of forming a militia and blocking border demarcation process

Important news from Sudan Radio Service, 26 October 2009:
Arop Madut Accuses Messiriya of Blocking Demarcation Process

(Juba) - A member of the Southern Sudan Legislative Assembly has accused Messiriya elders of forming a militia to protect their interests.

The elders recently unanimously rejected the results of the Abyei arbitration by the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague in September.

An MP for the Abyei area, Arop Madut Arop, told Sudan Radio Service in Juba that the Messiriya have deliberately blocked the process of border demarcation.

[Arop Madut]: “Recently, they held a meeting at a place called Sitip, midway between Abyei and Mujlad, in which they unanimously rejected the award, they said they will have nothing to do with it and that they are going to appeal against the award to the International Court of Arbitration and to the national constitutional commission. Meanwhile, they are forming a military command to protect their interests. So they have now stopped the demarcation of the border which should have finished in September.”

Madut said that if war erupts in the area, the Director of National Security would be responsible because he is aware of what is happening in the region.

He also threatened that any attacks against the Ngok Dinka would be considered as a direct attack on the SPLM.

[Arop Madut]: “The Ngok Dinka do not have militia, they have accommodated the SPLM since 2003, so that anybody who attacks the Ngok Dinka is attacking the SPLM/A, so I said that the responsibility for the next destruction of the area will lie with the director of national security because he is the security representative in the area. The governor of Southern Kordofan also sent officials. But the Missiriya haven’t been arrested. Supposing that I go on the street now and shout that am going to kill somebody, I will be arrested. So why are they not being arrested? This is the question now.”

The SPLM and the NCP both accepted the Abyei boundary ruling by the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague in July 2009. The Court redefined the boundaries of Abyei. However the Abyei Border demarcation team has been experiencing challenges due to disagreements between representatives of the SPLM and the NCP.

Abyei: Dinka Ngok Chief Kuol Alor: 'Dinka Ngok are Sudanese and should be treated equally'

Yesterday, on his return to Khartoum from the Abyei tribunal in The Netherlands, one of the Dinka Ngok chiefs, Chief Kuol Alor, said that NCP is happy because the oil-fields are now considered part of north Sudan.

Responding to President al-Bashir’s statement that he will provide services to the Messiriya tribe in a speech he made on Wednesday night in which he acknowledged the decision of the court, Chief Kuol Alor said that the Dinka Ngok are also Sudanese and should be treated equally.

From Sudan Radio Service, Friday, 24 July 2009:
Dinka Ng’ok Condemns NCP Reaction to Court Decision

(Khartoum) – The head of the NCP delegation to The Hague, Mohammed Ahmed al-Dir-Diri, described the decision of the Permanent Court of Arbitration as a victory for the National Congress Party. On Wednesday the court had ruled that boundaries in the oil-rich area around Abyei should be redrawn.

Speaking to Sudan Radio Service from Khartoum on Friday on his return from The Hague, one of the Dinka Ngok chiefs, Chief Kuol Alor, said that NCP is happy because the oil-fields are now considered part of north Sudan.

[Kuol Alor]: “They consider it a victory because they feel that most of the oil-fields east of the area which is now out of our area are in their hands. And they will not share with the SPLM and the Dinka Ngok. It has gone to the north and they can do whatever they want. As the president said yesterday, he will use the oil revenue to provide services for the Messiriya. If we start talking this kind of language we will end up arriving at a dead end.”

Responding to President al-Bashir’s statement that he will provide services to the Messiriya tribe in a speech he made on Wednesday night in which he acknowledged the decision of the court, Chief Alor said that even the Dinka Ngok are Sudanese and should be treated equally.

[Kuol Alor]: “We will know whether there will be secession in Sudan after a few months. Here the president himself forgot that he is the president of the whole of Sudan, he is supposed to know that these are his people. And we know it is not strange for him to say so, because the Abyei conflict began twenty years ago. He never visited the Abyei area. You can’t rule for twenty years and not even visit the Abyei area once. Now they are celebrating over the petroleum which has been given to them.”

Kuol Alor, a Dinka Ngok Chief, was speaking to Sudan Radio Service from Khartoum on Friday.

Click on Abyei label here below for related reports and updates.

Two Sudanese policeman killed in Abyei - 1 stabbed by a butcher from the Messiriya tribe

Police members of the Joint Integrated Unit (JIU) and the Joint Integrated Police Unit (JIPU) were involved in deadly fighting in Abyei. 2 killled.

Reports from the area say that the violence started when a policeman was stabbed by a butcher from the Messiriya tribe. He had refused to move to a new market in Abyei town. Also, as the police fired in the air to disperse the crowd, the SAF soldiers fired back believing they were under attack.

However another conflicting report says the two forces disagreed on how to deal with the butcher issue.

Source: Sudan Tribune 13 December 2008 by James Gatdet Dak. Copy:

TWO POLICEMEN KILLED IN ABYEI AFTER CLASHES BETWEEN POLICE AND SUDANESE SOLDIERS

December 12, 2008 (JUBA) – Northern Sudanese soldiers clashed today with some Abyei police members who belong to the southern Sudan government. Two policemen were killed in a misunderstanding that started with a scuffle between them and a butcher in the old market of the disputed area.

The Special Representative of the Secretary General for Sudan, Ashraf Jehangir Qazi, Head of UNMIS, deplored the incident and confirmed that members of the Joint Integrated Unit (JIU) and the Joint Integrated Police Unit (JIPU) were involved in the deadly fighting.

Last June the two peace partners, the NCP and the SPLM agreed, in order to avoid such violence as it was the case last May, to withdraw their units from the contested area, and to deploy only joint military and police units in Abyei.

Reports from the area say that the violence started when a policeman was stabbed by a butcher from the Messiriya tribe. He had refused to move to a new market in Abyei town. Also, as the police fired in the air to disperse the crowd, the SAF soldiers fired back believing they were under attack.

However another conflicting report says the two forces disagreed on how to deal with the butcher issue.

This latest clash comes after six months of relative peace in the area.

Heavy fighting erupted in May this year between the Sudan Armed Forces (SAF) and the Sudan People’s Liberation Army (SPLA) in the disputed oil rich region of Abyei, resulting to hundreds of casualties, destruction of the whole town and displacement of tens of thousands.

Government of Southern Sudan’s Minister for Presidential Affairs, Dr. Luka Biong Deng, said tensions were high on Friday in Abyei town after the deadly clash . He further said a number of people were reported killed and some others wounded and that civilians started fleeing the town for their safety.

Abyei Area’s Chief Administrator, Brig. Arop Moyak, is reportedly heading to the region to arrest the situation.

A roadmap agreement, which resulted to formation of interim administration within interim boundaries constituting Abyei Area, was reached in June by the parties to the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) signed in January 2005.

The agreement also saw the implementation of wealth sharing and security arrangement protocols in the area after three years of stalemate.

The head of the UNAMIs called on all parties and residents in Abyei, as well as people residing in Diffra and Agok, to remain calm. He asked that they offer their full cooperation and support to the Abyei Administration in the maintenance of peace and law and order.

He also urged the parties to take all necessary measures to avoid any further outbreaks of violence, and to ensure that today’s unfortunate incident does not impede the peaceful implementation of the Abyei road map.

The oil rich region according to the CPA will decide in 2011’s referendum to either annex to Southern Sudan or remain with northern Sudan in case the South votes for independence in the same year.

(ST) Related stories - Abyei:
- Breaking News: Sudanese army and local police clash in Abyei
- UK sponsors training course for Abyei joint forces
- Sudanese parties appoint president of Abyei arbitration tribunal

Copy of 5 Comments at Sudan Tribune article above

1. Comment 13 December 2008 07:24, by julius mowanga
It’s very obvious that the enemy of the liberated South Sudan, are active disengage, neither than concede to CPA. SPLM became like a consignement agent, meddling in matters considered as matter of life or death. Accordinglly, SPLM presence in the area is not functional, and causes a lot of provocative tenssions. Messeriya and Jeng-Ngok are cousins, lived for centuries together as one, but the greediness of NCP/SPLM’s officalls detorirated the insecuriy situation by those who call themselves sons-of Abyei; who are behind all these atrocities.

The area aknowledges the rule of public administration, which represents all the dwelling tribes and Maraheel as well. The involvement of SAF and SPLA ,is politically motivaed in order to secure some political gains, and lofty unaccountable funds.

Thus; the consequental reactions will bear more divission among the Abyei communities, and will lead to a further escalated conflicts. Underestimating the capabilities and the aggression potentiuality of Non-Dinka residents in the area, backed by NCP Prior to the oil and petroleum discoveries, all Abyei people, lived as one nation,but....willn’t let the people socially benfit, or strengthen their relationships and enhance their commitment. Peace management is far difficult than a war’s, but even though, no one can restrain a human being, accesesing ....etc...

NEW-SUDAN O yeeee... SPLA O yeeee

2. Comment 13 December 2008 by Martino Looding Nyekinyang
U shall not provok the army.

3. Comment 13 December 2008 by Deng Gai
Dear Southerners, there is no doubt that the NIF regime want to cause trouble in this country so that they use their newly bought military equipment thinking that they are the only solution to the current situation, but they are wrong on this issue because south Sudan now is more united and the SPLA is more equiped than they were before, to resist the NIF and its supporters but military option is not the best solution as wanted by the SPLM patterner.

So let remain vigilant and support our GOVernment rather than critizing it at this stage of time.My advice to HE Kiir Mayaardit is to act quickly to appoint the Defense Minister because we can not do without him/her while his/her services are need.

4. Comment 13 December 2008 by Martino Looding Nyekinyang
Gai, you are talking about oposit of the whole situatin of South unity or SPLA millitary strength. Right now, Dinkas are not the ones fight in abiyei, but Equatorians and some Nuers. Your message may be intended for those who are not on the ground or perhaps you are trying to fool arbas. Kiir is not sending his(BEGERS) to war zon, though all 32 tangs and trucks drivers currently in Newsite(Kakurotom) are from Kiir familly. They will never go to fight in Abiyei,. wait and see.

5. Comment 13 December 2008 by Trueson of Southerner is Back
What did these idiots of NCP want from the richest land of Sudan and they are not orgins of this land? They are alway creating problem that left people dead every month for no reason.

you wait we are sending our coward leader of EDF Big Logic with ten thousands troops to go and exerice the wrestling with you.

Big Logic don’t run to Uganda, go go to Abyei

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