North Darfur: Rhino – Al-Shartai Adam Sabi, leader of Dar Qali, and a number of community leaders in the city of Karnwi, North Darfur, were killed on Saturday during violent clashes between two ethnic groups from the Zaghawa tribe, against the backdrop of a tribal conflict that escalated into a bloody confrontation, according to eyewitnesses from the area.

Witnesses confirmed that the clashes began in the early hours of the morning and escalated into a bloody confrontation between the military groups, while local figures warned that these clashes could lead to increased regional tensions and affect security and stability in the area.

The slain Shartay was kidnapped in late August amid tribal tensions in Karnwi and Al-Tina, northwest of El Fasher, and intense military movements by local groups, following the failure of mediation efforts aimed at containing the conflict that broke out between two branches of the Zaghawa tribe.

Both sides began mobilizing their fighters in a number of cities after a reconciliation meeting between local and military leaders in the city of Tine, near the Chadian border, was targeted by a suicide bomber, killing nine people and injuring twelve others.

The incident sparked a wave of accusations against some members of the Zaghawa tribe of colluding with the Rapid Support Forces by passing on the coordinates of the meeting, which later led to the siege of Adam Sabi’s house in Karnwi by an armed tribal force in two combat vehicles, before he was abducted to an unknown location.