Gunmen have abducted three traders from El Daein, the capital of East Darfur state, amid a reported rise in kidnappings and armed robberies targeting merchants in the city.
Security sources told Darfur24 that trader Bashir Awad al-Sayed and two other men were seized on Thursday by armed men travelling in a combat vehicle.
The three were sitting with other traders outside their home in the Al-Tadamun neighbourhood in eastern El Daein when the gunmen arrived, threatened them at gunpoint and forced them into the vehicle before driving to an undisclosed location, according to the sources.
A trader who spoke to Darfur24 on condition of anonymity said the abducted men had worked for years in El Daein’s market, mainly in wholesale trading and money transfers.
One of the three had previously been kidnapped and was later released after a ransom was paid, the trader said.
El Daein has witnessed a noticeable increase in kidnappings and armed robberies in recent months, with traders and people involved in cash-transfer businesses among those particularly targeted.
No group has claimed responsibility for the latest abduction, and the whereabouts of the three men remain unknown.
