Origin of the Darfur Conflict
Pre-2003 Conflict in Darfur
The conflict with the greatest number of casualties in the Darfur region began in 2003. Previously, there were numerous clashes revolving around access to land, water and pasture, yet the international media rarely reported them. By 1986, after the armed conflict in Chad spilled into the region, these inter-tribal struggles in Darfur started taking a political turn. Once the government of Libya started getting involved in the affairs of Sudan, coupled with volatile political party dynamics in Sudan itself, the frequency of armed conflict intensified. Some tribes felt marginalized and oppressed; as a result, the governor of Western Darfur split the Masalit homeland into 13 areas, nine of which were to be ruled by people from Arab tribes.
The table below shows years prior to 2003 when the warring tribes held reconciliation conferences to resolve conflicts in Darfur:
| YEAR | TRIBES INVOLVED | REASON FOR CONFLICT |
| 1957 | Kababish vs Meidob | Territorial dispute and ownership of camels |
| 1968 | Rizzeyqat vs Ma’aliyah | Cattle rustling and access to grazing lands |
| 1969 | Rizzeyqat vs Zaghawa | Cattle rustling, access to watering holes and pasture |
| 1974 | Birgid vs Zaghawa | Cattle rustling and access to grazing and farming lands |
| 1976 | Rizzeyqat vs Beni Helba | Cattle rustling, access to watering holes and pasture |
| 1980 |
Rizzeyqat vs Beni Helba, Birgid, Dajo, and Fur |
Cattle rustling, access to watering holes and pasture |
| 1980 | Taisha vs Salamat | Cattle rustling, access to watering holes and pasture |
| 1982 |
Kababish vs Khawabeer, Meidob, Berti and Zaiyadiya |
Cattle rustling, access to watering holes and pasture |
| 1984 | Rizzeyqat vs Missairiya | Cattle rustling, access to watering holes and pasture |
| 1987 | Rizzeyqat vs Dinka | Political retaliation |
| 1987 | Gimir, Mararit vs Fellata | Cattle rustling, access to watering holes and pasture |
| 1989 | Fur vs Zaghawa | Cattle rustling and access to grazing lands |
| 1989 | Rizzeyqat, Missairiya vs Fur | Territorial dispute and political alignment |
| 1989 | Arab tribes vs Fur | Territorial dispute and political alignment |
| 1989 | Gimir vs Zaghawa | Cattle rustling, access to watering holes and pasture |
| 1996 | Rizzeyqat vs Zaghawa | Cattle rustling, access to watering holes and pasture |
| 1997-1999 | Arab tribes vs Masalit | Cattle rustling, access to watering holes, pasture, borders |
Source: Ḥarīr, S. A. A. (1994)."Arab belt" versus "African belt": Ethno-political conflict in Dar Fur and the regional cultural factors (in) Ḥarīr, S. A. A., Tvedt, T., & Badal, R. K. (Eds.), Short-cut to decay: The case of the Sudan. Uppsala: Nordiska Afrikainstitutet.