Sudan: 31 Killed in Tribal Clashes in Blue Nile Province

The Rapid Support Forces of the Sudanese army in Darfur (Reuters)
The Rapid Support Forces of the Sudanese army in Darfur (Reuters)
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Sudan: 31 Killed in Tribal Clashes in Blue Nile Province

The Rapid Support Forces of the Sudanese army in Darfur (Reuters)
The Rapid Support Forces of the Sudanese army in Darfur (Reuters)

At least 31 people were killed in tribal clashes in a Sudanese southern province, authorities said, the latest bloodshed in a country in turmoil since an October military coup.

The fighting between the Hausa and Birta ethnic groups in the Blue Nile province grew out of the killing of a farmer earlier this week, according to a statement from the local government late Friday.

The clashes also left at least 39 people injured and damaged some 16 shops shops in the town of Roseires, it said, The Associated Press reported.

The local government deployed the military and paramilitary Rapid Support Forces — or RSF — to bring stability to the region.

Authorities also imposed a nightly curfew and banned gatherings in the area where the clashes took place.

The violence came amid chaos in Sudan since the military’s took over in October, removing a transitional government that ruled the country since a popular uprising forced the overthrow of longtime autocrat Omar al-Bashir in April 2019.

The coup upended the country’s transition to democracy and raised questions about military leaders’ ability to bring security to Sudan’s far-reaching areas. In April, tribal clashes killed over 200 people in war-wrecked Darfur.



Top Houthi Leaders Flee Sanaa Amid Trump-Ordered US Strikes

Top Houthi leaders disappear from Sanaa, communication cut off (Houthi Media)
Top Houthi leaders disappear from Sanaa, communication cut off (Houthi Media)
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Top Houthi Leaders Flee Sanaa Amid Trump-Ordered US Strikes

Top Houthi leaders disappear from Sanaa, communication cut off (Houthi Media)
Top Houthi leaders disappear from Sanaa, communication cut off (Houthi Media)

Senior Houthi leaders have disappeared from public life in Sanaa, gripped by fear of US airstrikes ordered by President Donald Trump, now entering their third week, sources in Yemen said.

The first-tier leadership of the Iran-aligned group is believed to have fled the capital, which remains under Houthi control, seeking shelter in remote areas of Saada and Amran provinces.

According to informed sources, the group’s leaders have severed traditional communication channels and several have either gone into hiding or relocated to undisclosed locations as a precaution against possible targeted strikes.

Since the launch of US airstrikes on March 15, senior and mid-level Houthi leaders have vanished from public view and social media platforms, Yemeni sources say, as fear of targeted attacks continues to grow within the group’s ranks.

Informed sources confirmed there has been no trace of the group’s top two tiers of leadership - neither in the institutions under Houthi control in Sanaa, nor on the streets and neighborhoods they once frequented in luxury vehicles.

Even the sectarian events that Houthi leaders were known to regularly attend have reportedly gone on without their visible presence.

The Houthi group has remained tight-lipped about the extent of its human and military losses following US airstrikes ordered by Trump.

However, sources say several leaders not belonging to the ruling family of Houthi leader Abdulmalik al-Houthi are still believed to be in Sanaa.

Many of these figures have adopted strict security measures to avoid detection, including travelling in vehicles with tinted windows and covering their faces with cloaks when leaving temporary residences, sources told Asharq Al-Awsat.

The precautions reflect growing fears of betrayal or being targeted by further strikes.

A source in Sanaa revealed that third-tier Houthi officials—mostly tribal figures and field supervisors—were instructed to flee to the northern provinces of Saada, Amran and other areas as US air raids intensified.

According to the source, mid-level Houthi officials have lost all direct contact with the group’s senior leadership after the latter switched locations and shut down their communication lines.