Two kills in east Sudan

KHARTOUM: Sudanese police used teargas to disperse a protest by hundreds of tribesmen in east Sudan on Thursday after two people died during clashes with police, residents said.

Anger has been simmering in the east with tribes complaining their region is underdeveloped despite its importance to the economy. The east is home to the country's only port and oil export terminal and elements of the gold mining industry.

On Wednesday, clashes broke out in the town of Gedaref when police tried to execute an order from authorities to remove cattle and shelters built illegally, the interior ministry said.

One policeman was also injured during the clashes after residents resisted the order, the ministry said on its website late on Wednesday.

On Thursday, police used teargas to disperse hundreds of members of the Bani Amer tribe the same as the two dead who gathered in the centre of Gedaref to protest against the police, residents said.

Shots could be heard although it was unclear who had fired, a resident said by telephone. Tribesmen had arrived in the morning from the countryside to join the protest.

Sudan's east was the scene of a rebellion ended in 2006 by a shaky peace deal with the local Beja Congress party. Many people in the region still complain of marginalisation.

Khartoum is already fighting armed opposition in two southern border states and a separate insurgency in the Western region of Darfur.

Dissatisfaction in border regions is linked to development being concentrated on the capital which has been the scene of a building boom in recent years.

Copyright Reuters, 2011