Sudan: At least four dead from ethnic clashes in Blue Nile state

Renewed ethnic clashes in Sudan's south have killed at least four people, a tribal leader and medical source said Thursday.

Violence broke out between members of the Hausa people and rival groups, most notably the al-Hamaj tribe in the Wad al-Mahi village east of the city of Roseires in the southern Blue Nile state.

"Four people were killed and multiple houses were burnt," said Mohamed Noureddine, a Hausa tribal leader.  "The fighting is still ongoing."

A medical source at the Wad al-Mahi hospital confirmed that four bodies had arrived along with multiple wounded at the facility, "which is severely unequipped".

The affiliations of the victims were not immediately clear.

Fighting between the Hausa people and other groups first broke out in July, leaving over 100 dead and dozens more wounded.

Those clashes erupted after Hausa members requested the creation of a "civil authority" that rival groups saw as a means of gaining access to land.

The clashes also triggered angry protests across Sudan, with the Hausa people demanding justice for those killed.

Other demonstrations called for "unity" and an "end to tribalism" in the impoverished northeast African nation.  In late July, senior leaders from rival groups agreed to cease hostilities.

Despite the deal, clashes broke out again in September, leaving at least 18 people killed.

The United Nations says the recent bouts of violence in Blue Nile state have displaced some 37,700 people.

Sudan is grappling with deepening political unrest and a spiralling economic crisis since last year's military coup, led by army chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan.

The military power grab upended a transition to civilian rule launched after the 2019 ouster of strongman Omar al-Bashir, who ruled for three decades.

The country has since been rocked by near-weekly protests and a violent crackdown that has killed at least 117 people, according to pro-democracy medics.