SRCS issues statement on mass graves in South Kordofan

Red Crescent’s report in sharp contrast with recent human rights revelations

The Sudanese Red Crescent Society (SRCS), the only humanitarian organization President Omar Al-Bashir allows in the region, issued a statement on a total of 59 burials of war victims in South Kordofan.The announcement came after Human Rights Watch (HRW) and Amnesty International (AI) released reports suggesting death of 26 civilians in South Kordofan as a result of aerial bombings.

The number reported by the SRCS is in sharp contrast to the description of casualties in the HRW/AI reports and the recent discovery of additional mass graves.

In its latest statement, the SRCS says it has collected and buried 59 bodies since the outbreak of fighting in South Kordofan in June. Society volunteers are said to have registered all relevant information relating to dead bodies, including place of burial, which is necessary for the identification of victims.

Osman Jaafar, Secretary-General of the SRCS stated that 11 families had so far been able to identify their loved ones, stressing that the burials were in accordance with the customs and local traditions in cemeteries of Kadugli.

Osman Jaafar was recently accused by the SPLM (South) of playing an active role in militia attacks. Jaafar denied these allegations, stressing the independence and trustworthiness of his organization.