South Sudan is preparing to hold a referendum on January 9 that could see the region split from Sudan's Arab-dominated government in Khartoum. On the same day, a similar referendum is supposed to take place in the Sudanese region of Abyei, but who gets to vote in that referendum is in dispute.
Referendum Source of Tension in Sudan's Abeyi Region
Belongings from recent returnees are left outside because there is no room to for them in the small traditional one-room dwellings called "tukus."
Trucks are being provided to returnees by local authorities in Abyei to transport household items.
Some returnees have been away for so long, they have no homes to go back to. Abyei authorities have requested international assistance in helping thousands resettle.
Local residents walking through a neighborhood in Abyei town.
Volunteers and recent returnees are helping local authorities register people arriving from the North.
Abyei residents, who fled to northern Sudan during the war, are coming back ahead of a January referendum on self-determination for the region.
The vast majority of the returnees are Ngok Dinka, who say they are happy to be back to their traditional homeland of Abyei.
UN's Mission in Sudan, known as UNMIS, has about 700 peacekeepers deployed in Abyei town.
Ngok Dinkas' Paramount Chief Kuol Deng Kuol
A young Ngok Dinka
A Ngok Dinka woman, who spent years in exile in the North, shows her happiness at being reunited with her family and friends in Abyei.