Kadugli / Talodi — Last week, a Nuba woman farmer was shot dead near Kadugli, capital of South Kordofan. End May, two herdsmen were killed in the area of Talodi. Both attacks were attributed to Arab nomads.

The Sudanese Human Rights and Development Organisation (HUDO) reported yesterday that Hawa Haroun Habib (40) was killed on her farm near Lagouri village, about 10 km east of Kadugli on May 16.

She was tilling her farm land together with other two women, when they were attacked by four armed men. They tried to flee, but the assailants managed to catch Habib.

The two other farmers managed to reach Lagouri. When a group of villagers reached the farm, they found Habib dead with gunshot wound on the head.

The two women farmers stated that the features of the attackers indicated they were nomad Arabs. The case was reported to the police of Kadugli but "the police did not even visit the crime scene".

Killers identified

On May 28, Nuba herders Abas Eleiri (33) and Ahmed Abu Seleib (30) were killed in El Hejeirat, about 22 km southeast of Talodi town. near Talodi.

The two victims were searching for a lost cow, when were intercepted by two armed Arab nomads, who immediately shot them dead.

An eyewitness (who was hiding) recognized the murderers, HUDO reported in a separate statement yesterday. He went with the victims' relatives to the police of Talodi, mentioned the names of the attackers and the location of their settlement, but "the police did not arrest them".

HUDO Centre expressed its serious concerns "about the security situation and the safety of civilians in conflict areas" and called upon the police in South Kordofan to immediately investigate the killings; the state prosecutor to implement the Rule of Law, and the South Kordofan state security committee to dissolve the militias and disarm their members, "to ensure the safety of civilians" in the region.