KHARTOUM, Sudan, Jan. 11 (UPI) -- Clashes over Sudan's oil-rich Abyei region killed least 30 people and raised fears about the outcome of an independence referendum, officials said.
Officials said they were concerned that the referendum in the south could lead to widespread violence in the Abyei region that straddles the area where northern and southern Sudan meet and factions loyal to President Omar al-Bashir or to southern leadership, the Los Angeles Times reported.
The south and the north have accused each other of influencing Abyei's clans in issues concerning control of grazing lands, water and oil. A separate referendum this week on whether Abyei would join the north or south was delayed over hanging political issues and fears of renewed violence.
"We will not accept Abyei to be part of the south," Bashir told al-Jazeera recently. "If any party takes independent action over Abyei, that would be the beginning of a conflict".
Fighting broke out in the days leading up to the weeklong referendum that began Sunday to determine whether the Christian-dominated south wants to secede from Sudan. The south, which fought a civil war with the predominantly Muslim north in which 2 million people died, is expected to vote to break Africa's largest country in two.
If the secession occurs, the the south will take with it about 80 percent of the country's oil output, the Times said, making control of the oil fields around Abyei critical to the north. UPI
