JEM releases 44 Sudanese army prisoners

The Justice and Equality Movement has released 44 prisoners who had been captured from the Sudanese army. Their release was facilitated by the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC). This was confirmed by Saleh Dabbakeh, ICRC representative in Sudan.

Dabbakeh stated, “Today, the ICRC concluded successfully the hand-over of 44 Sudanese Armed Forces persononnel freed by JEM in North Darfur to the Sudanese authorities in Alfasher. The complex operation has taken a whole day to complete. Three helicopters from the World Food Programme (WFP) and a fixed wing plane (Red Cross 908) were involved in the operation.”

Although not confirmed, sources indicated that about five of the soldiers were from eastern Sudan while the rest were mainly from the Nuba Mountains, South Kordofan and Darfur. It is thought that at one point the prisoners were being held in the area of Jebel Moon, a rebel stronghold which fell to government troops just days ago. JEM was supposed to release prisoners as part of the framework peace agreement signed with the government in February 2010. However, the rebel movement has broken off peace negotiations citing ceasefire violations by the government.