UN troops kill protestor and injure another in disputed region

Unifil in Sudan One protestor was killed in clashes in Abyei following a meeting between the UN and leaders of the al-Masirya al-Arabya tribe.  The meetings focused on grazing rights and access to water resources during the drought season.
 Some members of the Denka Nakok tribe attacked the delegation by brandishing knives and throwing stones. Ethiopian troops subsequently intervened and opened fire on tribal members gathered outside the UN headquarters in the region on Tuesday, killing one protestor and injuring another.
Al Khyr Al Faheem, the administrator for Abyei told Arabstoday that he had contacted the deputy leader in the South region, Dr. Luka Biong, to voice his disapproval of the action and warn of possible future implications. Biong has subsequently spoken to leaders of the Al-Masirya tribe in an attempt to find an intermediate solution to the issue.
President Bashir has previously rejected a compromise which he insists is against both the Sudanese constitution and law. The Sudanese government has also refused the offer of mediation by foreign outsiders which it says was not included under the protocol signed in 2005.
Bashir has stated that the only solution for this situation is to give all disputed parties a longer period of time to reach an agreement ahead of a proposed referendum in October 2013. He called upon all parties to work together to find a solution to the problem.
The spokesperson of the popular military in the south, Major Filip Aquir, stated that he had been out of the country at the time of the incident and did not have a comment to make at the present time.
The Khartoum and Juba governments have both agreed to meet Bashir and Salva Kiir in Addis Ababa. They are also prepared to temporarily exclude Abyei from any bilateral agreement signed between the two countries. The deputy of the supervising committee in Abyei, Edward Leno, said that the Sudanese government was avoiding reaching an agreement but warned that it would be powerless to hamper next October’s referendum.  He vowed to use the presence of the International Security Council to enforce the referendum according to item seven of the UN resolution.