KAUDA – A senior SPLM-N official has condemned the looting of humanitarian aid warehouses in Kauda, two days after another official accused armed groups described as “rebels” in Heiban County of seizing food supplies intended for families affected by recent fighting.

Dawood Ishaya Al-Ful, acting governor of South Kordofan/Nuba Mountains, said in a statement on Wednesday that the looting of humanitarian supplies was unacceptable and urged residents to remain vigilant and report any attempts to target aid warehouses.

Al-Ful said protecting civilians’ rights to life, security, peace and justice remained a priority, and called on humanitarian organizations to continue their work despite what he described as “criminal practices” aimed at obstructing assistance to those in need.

His statement, however, did not identify those responsible for the looting and did not directly repeat accusations made two days earlier by an official in the SPLM-N-linked civilian administration, who blamed a group she described as “rebels” in Heiban County.

That official said the group looted warehouses and food supplies belonging to humanitarian organizations in the Al-Matar area south of Kauda on Monday, Aug. 10. She said the supplies had been allocated to families affected by the recent violence in Kauda, adding that it was the third such incident after similar looting in Kauda Foq and Kudi.

The differing public positions highlight growing tensions inside areas controlled by the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement-North (SPLM-N), led by Abdelaziz al-Hilu, where local disputes have escalated into armed confrontations and a wider internal crisis since March.

According to the SPLM-N’s account, the unrest began on March 12 in the Dubai area of Heiban County after a dispute between members of the Atoro and Shawaya communities over boundary demarcation. The movement said it intervened to separate the two sides and ordered officers from both communities to report to the General Staff headquarters for investigation.

The dispute later widened into a confrontation within the movement’s military wing after SPLM-N leaders accused Atoro members and commanders of mutiny and disobeying military orders. In May, the movement announced operations in Atoro areas to pursue those it described as “rebels.”

Atoro leaders and representatives have offered a different account, accusing SPLM-N leaders of seeking to impose control by force over Atoro lands and natural resources, particularly gold-rich areas. They also alleged that the movement’s military and security influence had been used to facilitate mining activities without the consent of local communities.

The fighting spread in April and May from rural areas around Kauda to the town and its outskirts, amid reports of homes and villages being burned, markets and property looted, and civilians killed, wounded and displaced. The Sudan Doctors Network said more than 61 people, including nine children and five women, were killed during about two weeks of fighting, citing accounts from survivors.

The violence has also disrupted humanitarian access in parts of the Nuba Mountains, where aid groups face growing challenges reaching displaced families and communities affected by clashes, insecurity and damaged supply routes.

In June, the SPLM-N announced an investigation into the violence in an effort to address the fallout from the clashes and determine responsibility, but tensions between the movement’s leadership and Atoro groups have continued.

The crisis has exposed deeper disputes over land, local authority, natural resources and the balance between the movement’s military structure and community demands in areas under its control.