16 Dead As Ethnic Hausa, Nuba Groups Clash In Sudan

At least 16 people have been killed in clashes between ethnic Hausa and Nuba groups, Sudan's Suna news agency reported on Tuesday, prompting the governor to declare a curfew in White Nile state, which borders South Sudan.

The recent conflict between the two competing generals who have been in command since their 2021 putsch, which has left hundreds dead, mostly in the capital and in Darfur, has so far avoided the state, which extends from Khartoum to the southern border.

The conflict for power in Sudan has nothing to do with this interethnic violence.

In Sudan, conflicts frequently break out between communities over access to water and land that are necessary for farmers and herders, who are frequently members of opposing ethnic groups, while a lot of weaponry is still in use as a result of decades of civil war.

According to the official Suna news agency, ethnic hostilities between the Hausa and Nuba that started on Monday in Kosti, the White Nile's capital, "escalated again on Tuesday, killing 16 people on both sides."

In addition, "many injuries and houses burned," it claimed.

The governor issued a "curfew from 20:00 to 05:00" local time (18:00-03:00 GMT) as a result of the circumstances, the news source reported.

In the Blue Nile state, which borders Ethiopia, fighting between Hausa and opposing clans already claimed more than 200 lives in October.

The Hausa have long argued that a traditional law that forbids them from holding land due to their recent immigration discriminates against them.

Inter-ethnic and inter-tribal clashes have grown since the coup in 2021 as a result of the security vacuum it caused, according to experts.

In Sudan, where agriculture and livestock account for 43% of jobs and 30% of GDP, the question of access to land is extremely important.