By Ebi Kesiena
Nine people have been killed in clashes in southern Chad between herder and farmer communities, the local governor said on Monday.
The violence broke out on Friday at a small village near Mengalang in Eastern Logone province, about 500 kilometres (300 miles) south of the capital N’Djamena.
The provincial governor, Abdelkerim Seid Bauche, noted that the root cause of the clash was still unknown.
“Nine people died but the situation today is under control, with defence and security forces who have been deployed to the area.”
The tension between semi-nomadic Arab herders and sedentary indigenous farmers is a traditional problem in central and southern Chad.
They often arise when farmers accuse herders of allowing their animals to eat or trample on their crops.
Recall that on the 13 of August, 13 people were killed in the village of Djongol in central Chad after a child stole a farmer’s hoe and an altercation spiralled into gunfire.
