Sudan’s army and Rapid Support Forces clashed on Sunday with the Justice and Equality Movement in the country’s western Darfur region not far from the border with South Sudan, according to statements by both government and rebel officials.
State-run media in Khartoum reported a government victory in Al Nakhara area south of Tulus Locality whereas a rebel spokesman reported heavy fighting in another area near there, Dimso Locality and also in Nakhara area west of Dimso.
Tulus is located southwest of the South Darfur state capital Nyala and north of the disputed Kafia Kinji enclave in the border region between Sudan and South Sudan.
Sudan News Agency (SUNA) quoted the official army spokesman Colonel Al Sawarmi Khalid Saad as saying that the army and RSF militias repulsed an attack by Justice and Equality Movement Forces “infiltrating from South Sudan.”
The spokesman claimed the army seized many vehicles and equipment from fleeing rebels, whom he said had been based in the Raja area for the last few months receiving training.
On the other side, a spokesman of the Sudan Liberation Army led by Minni Minawi said heavy clashes started on Saturday and further claimed that a joint rebel force of SLA-MM and JEM took control of Buram in South Darfur on Saturday.
This was contradicted by a Sudan Tribune reporter who said the rebels had not captured Buram. He reported, however, that the government troops suffered casualties with 63 wounded arriving from the field to the Nyala hospital.
Phone networks in several areas of South Darfur were disrupted on Sunday.
The Justice and Equality Movement has yet to make a public statement on the matter other than to say on their Facebook page that their forces had fought in Buram and killed many government troops.
File photo: JEM troops in the Unity/West Kordofan area, 15 April 2012 (Adriane Ohanesian/AFP)