Selim tribe welcomes thousands of Shilluk refugees

Thousands of members of the Shilluk tribe in South Sudan’s Upper Nile State have fled to southern White Nile State in Sudan.

Thousands of members of the Shilluk tribe in South Sudan’s Upper Nile State have fled to southern White Nile State in Sudan.

Members of the Selim tribe living in the Umm Jalala area of White Nile said they would open their homes to the new arrivals, based on the “historic ties” they share with their neighbors.

The Selim have also called on the local government to provide the refugees with food and medicine and to vaccinate any livestock they brought.

The refugees, estimated at more than 5,000, are primarily from the areas of Wadakona, Kaka Tijariya, Kodok and Matimer.

There is frequent back-and-forth between the two areas. Nomadic tribes from Sudan spend almost nine months each year in Upper Nile’s Manyo County grazing their animals.

New cabinet

White Nile’s Governor Yousif al-Shanbali issued a decree appointing a new cabinet over the weekend.

The new ministers are:

Hafiz Atala-Mannan, Minister of Finance and Economy

El-Sheikh Hemaidi, Minister of Education

Prof. Ahmed Al-Bashir Al-Badawi, Minister of Agriculture

Dr. Hamid Ali Mohammed, Minister of Health

Ahmed Iddris Ali, Minister of Social Affairs

Engineer Sidiq Yousif Musa, Minister of Animal Resources

Mustafa Yousif Al-Bur, Minister of Higher Council for Youth and Sports

Mohammed Al-Mahi Al-Dhao, Adviser at the State General Secretariat