650 Sudanese sign petition on Heiban children’s massacre

Hundreds of Sudanese political and civic actors, as well as individuals have signed a petition condemning and expressing their horror at the May 1 2016 ‘Heiban Massacre’, when six children died an aerial bombardment by the Sudanese Air Force on residential areas in South Kordofan.

As reported by Radio Dabanga the next day. Kuku Dawli (4), Yousif Yakgoub (4), Jehan Abdelrahman Ibrahim (5), Hafiz Mahmoud (10), Ibrahim Abdelrahman Ibrahim (10), and Nidal Abdelrahman Ibrahim (12) died when Heiban was strafed by a Sudanese jet fighter.

Signatories include 29 heads of all the major opposition parties in Sudan, 30 representatives of civil society, and hundreds of individuals.

The petition refers to images of the bodies of the six children that were widely disseminated after the event. Radio Dabanga chose not to publish the most gruesome images, that show the children’s bodies with horrific injuries. (Read the full petition here)

“These images will continue to blight our consciousness for years to come and shame humanity…”

These images will continue to blight our consciousness for years to come and shame humanity as long as the Sudanese Government persists in directing its aggressive, indiscriminate aerial weapons – including barrel and cluster bombs – at innocent civilians; children, women and the elderly,” the petition reads.

“We the undersigned, therefore urge that the killing of Heiban’s children be recognized for what it is; a serious crime in our Sudanese history, one that illustrates the horror and racism of the wars carried out by Government forces and its militias against Sudanese citizens.”

The signatories “call for the reawakening of the Sudanese national consciousness and for individuals and organisations to take campaign actions in response to this crime. We call upon the regional and international actors, including the African Union and United Nations, to exert pressure on the Sudanese Government to end this violence and make Heiban the last aerial bombardment against civilians. This should pave the way for an end to the ongoing wars in Sudan and bring about a comprehensive, just and lasting peace in the country” the petition concludes.