NAIROBI – Violence has reached Sudan’s Nuba Mountains, a region that had become a refuge for people fleeing the country’s war, with recent attacks killing civilians and Christian religious leaders.
The latest violence has raised concern among Christian communities in South Kordofan, where Christians make up about 45% of the population. The region has also hosted close to one million people, many of them Christian refugees displaced by the wider conflict.
At least 27 people, including four children, were killed last week when a rebel group attacked two villages in the Nuba Mountains, according to recent reports. Many others were injured as fighting spread through the area. The attacks came after two Christian religious leaders were killed in separate incidents.
The Rev Abel Idris Jongool, an Anglican priest, died from injuries after an attack on his community near Korkel Theological College on July 24. The seminary serves churches in the Nuba Mountains.
On June 19, Catholic priest Father Youhanna Al-Amin was shot dead in Kauda. He had remained with his parish despite the worsening security situation in the area. The deaths have deeply affected local Christians who depended on religious leaders not only for worship but also for education, healthcare and other community services.
“It’s difficult for the people after the killing of the religious leaders,” Sudanese Christian youth leader Bolis Jacob Medan told Religion News Service. He said many residents were disturbed because the leaders had lived among them and served the wider community.
Christian Solidarity Worldwide said attacks on religious leaders were unusual in an area that had experienced long periods of peaceful coexistence between different faiths.
However, religious leaders have also cautioned against describing the wider conflict as a religious war. Francis Kuria Kagema of the African Council of Religious Leaders said attacks on any religious community could further inflame tensions.
The violence has also disrupted aid deliveries and worsened food shortages, adding to the pressure on Christian communities already affected by displacement and the deaths of religious leaders.
