Sudan declares state of emergency in Blue Nile over tribal conflict

By Bahram Abdel Moneim

KHARTOUM, Sudan (AA) - The Sudanese authorities on Friday declared a state of emergency in the state of Blue Nile in the wake of killings of more than 200 people as a result of a tribal conflict.

Ahmed Al-Omda, the state's governor, said that the emergency will remain in effect throughout the Blue Nile region for a period of 30 days.

The US embassy in Khartoum tweeted: “We are pained by the reported loss of more than 200 lives to intercommunal violence in Blue Nile and the growing death toll due to clashes in West Kordofan.”

The embassy urged that “the violence cease immediately and that the government engage the affected communities in a dialogue to restore peace between those who have lived side by side for generations.”

It called for “unimpeded humanitarian access to ensure help is provided to people impacted by the fighting.”

The clashes are the latest in a wave of tribal violence that has swept across the country despite the signing of a nationwide peace deal two years ago.

Sudan has been without a functioning government since October 2021, when the military dismissed Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok’s transitional government and declared a state of emergency, a move decried by political forces as a "military coup."

*Ikram Imane Kouachi contributed to this report