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In south Sudan, tribal disputes leave 185 dead

Other News Materials 4 August 2009 12:28 (UTC +04:00)

At least 185 people, most of them women and children, have lost their lives in the recent spate of fierce clashes between rival ethnic groups in south Sudan, reported PressTV.

The violence broke out when a host of unknown armed men stormed a makeshift camp housing the Lou-Nuer tribe in the Akobo region of Jonglei state.

Local Commissioner Goi Yol blamed the attack on the rival Murle tribe, which has refused to observe a negotiated cease-fire after a series of retaliatory attacks earlier this year. Some 650 people from both sides have lost their lives in tribal violence since March.

Yol added that armed men raided the camping area and chased civilians toward the Geni River, near the Ethiopian border. A dozen soldiers who were deployed near the camp to guard the displaced families were also killed in the incident.

Sudan remains awash with small arms and there are frequent clashes between rival groups in Africa's largest country. More than 1,000 people have lost their lives so far this year in south Sudan in ethnic disputes over cattle and territory.

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