The central government mobilized Muslim groups in Bahr El Ghazal against the SPLA, viewed as a Dinka army, arming private militias and exploiting their historical animosities with the Dinka. 28 Ali Tamim Fartak continued in power in Wau after the 1989 NIF coup. The Dinka are the most numerous ethnic group in Sudan. Their territory covers about one-tenth of the one million square miles that make Sudan the largest country in Africa. 32 Dinka land is a rich savannah, segmented by the waters of the Nile and its tributaries, in Bahr El Ghazal and Upper Nile, with some Dinka in Kordofan.
Cattle provide dairy products, other food, and bridewealth, homicide, and other compensation.
Rural Dinka society is transhumant. During the hunger gap, milk from cattle is a main source of Dinka nutrition. The physical environment is extremely harsh. Disease-bearing insects abound. In the rainy season, heavy and stormy rains lead to overflowing rivers, floods, swamps, mud, and malaria.