The Heglig Crisis was a brief war fought between the countries of Sudan and South Sudan in 2012 over oil-rich regions between South Sudan's Unity and Sudan's South Kordofan states. South Sudan invaded and briefly occupied the small border town of Heglig before being pushed back by the Sudanese army. Small-scale clashes continued until an agreement on borders and natural resources was signed on 26 September, resolving most aspects of the conflict.
Background
South Sudan's independence was preceded by two civil wars, from 1955 to 1972 and from 1983 to 2005, in which 2.5 million people were killed and more than 5 million externally displaced. Relations between the two states have been marked by conflict over the Greater Nile Oil Pipeline and the disputed region of Abyei, even though Sudan was the first state to recognise South Sudan. In January 2012, South Sudan shut down all of its oil fields in a row over the fees Sudan demanded to transit the oil.
In May 2011, it was reported that Sudan had seized control of Abyei, a disputed oil-rich border region, with a force of approximately 5,000 soldiers after three days of clashes with South Sudanese forces. The precipitating factor was an ambush by the South killing 22 northern soldiers. The northern advance included shelling, aerial bombardment and numerous tanks. Initial reports indicated that over 20,000 people fled. The interim South Sudanese government declared this as an "act of war," and the United Nations sent an envoy to Khartoum, the Sudanese capital, to intervene. South Sudan says it has withdrawn its forces from Abyei. A deal on militarization was reached on 20 June 2011. The United Nations Interim Security Force for Abyei, consisting of Ethiopian troops were deployed under a UNSC resolution from 27 June 2011. In early December 2011, Jau, a town in Unity state in South Sudan, was occupied by Sudanese forces. In early March 2012, the Sudanese Air Force bombed parts of Pariang county.
Each country accuses the other of supporting rebels on their soil as part of the ongoing internal conflict in Sudan and in South Sudan.
Events
26–28 March South Sudanese repulsed from Heglig
On 26 March, the Republic of Sudan claimed that South Sudan attacked the Heglig oilfield (called Panthou by South Sudan), located in the Sudanese state of South Kordofan, while South Sudan claims it was acting in self-defence after an attack on its territory. The South Sudanese attack was supported by the Sudanese rebel group JEM, which attacked from Unity State. The following day, 27 March, the Sudanese Air Force launched a bombing raid on the Unity oilfield in the South Sudanese state of Unity, located to the north of the state capital, Bentiu. The Sudanese Army later attacked the disputed areas of Jau, Pan Akuach, and Teshwin, but were repelled by the South Sudanese Sudan People's Liberation Army.
South Sudanese artillery positions 20 kilometres north of Bentiu, which had been involved in the shelling of Heglig, were bombarded by artillery from the northern side of the border. The Republic of Sudan's Information Minister, Abdallah Ali Masar, confirmed that South Sudanese had penetrated 10 km into Sudanese territory, but also claimed that Sudanese forces had repelled them and driven them back, and had taken several prisoners.
South Sudanese troops were ordered by their government to disengage and withdraw from the disputed area on 28 March. Dead bodies and destroyed vehicles lay strewn in Heglig, the oilfield which was the site of bloody battles. Three bodies were identified as Southern Sudanese soldiers, while a tank as well as 4 pickup trucks were destroyed.
On 31 March, Sudanese warplanes bombed the Southern forces positions on the border, although officials from the north said it was artillery, not aircraft involved in the attack.
Early April: South Sudanese capture of Heglig
South Sudan claimed to have shot down a Sudanese MiG-29 warplane on 4 April over Unity state in South Sudan. The air raids reportedly took place near Heglig and forced an Al Jazeera camera crew to take cover, as Sudanese planes bombed an oil pipeline. The bombing did not apparently lead to any casualties or significant damage. The Sudanese government denied any bombing from the air had taken place and called the accusations "fabrications" by South Sudan.
