DARFUR, October 22 (IslamOnline.net) - Many Darfuris have marked Ramadan this year recalling how the holy month acted as a chance for warring parties to settle down their disputes peacefully at collective iftar banquets.

Local inhabitants have waited for collective iftar banquets to break their daylong fast also creating a conductive atmosphere for ending hostilities in the turbulent western Sudanese region.

“Collective Iftar banquets make up the old tradition of defusing tribal tension at table, especially between shepherds and farmers (clashing over green pastures),” said Issa Jales, leader of the African Bergid tribes _ the largest in Darfur.

Jales told IslamOnline.net how the 30 days of the holy month were exploited to bury the hatchet whatever complex it was, not to mention paying blood money for killing crimes to end a tribal feud that could have taken a long time to end.

“These iftar meeting had been always capped with sealing reconciliation deals, after which the two sides put their disputes behind their backs and went to Tarawih prayers altogether,” he added.

Jales said the house of the tribe chief has witnessed a buzz of activity by these meetings.

But, Jales said, that has become part of what he calls happy old days.

The tribe chief said the foreign interference into the situation in Darfur turned things more complex that tribal disputes could not be longer settled on an iftar meal.

He accused the Darfur rebels, embolden by the foreign intervention into the crisis, of having a far-fetched complex agenda.

“Ramadan has given the hope for convincing rebels in Darfur to lay down weapons and sit for talks with the Khartoum government. Now things slipped out of control following the foreign intervention,” said Jales, a former security official for 35 years.

The United Nations labeled the Darfur conflict, which erupted in February 2003, as the world's worst current humanitarian crisis, putting the number of people killed at 10,000 to 50,000 and over one million reportedly forced to flee their homes.

But the Khartoum government disputed the world organizations figures, also dismissing the US accusations of genocide in Darfur.

Darfur is known for having large potential reserves of oil and other natural resources.

In Niyala, the southern city of Darfur, collective iftar banquets are held, where passers-by, foreigners and aid workers could share the meal with fast-breaking locals.

The tribal chiefs also held banquets, where all members of the tribe are invited for. They should turn out for the meal; otherwise their absence could be seen as an insult to these chiefs.

The Darfuris have their own distinctive dishes, including the popular “Al-Helw Morr”, roughly translated as sweat bitter.

Their popular drink is a mixture of the maize flour and spices from which red pastas are made. The pastas are put in cold water and mixed with sugar.

However, many Darfuris shied away from having interest into in the Ramadan traditions die to deteriorating security conditions and rising number of refugees and internally displaced people, said Mohamed Abdel-Karim, a Niyala resident.