Sudan govt delegation visits scene of deadly North Darfur sit-in attack

A high-level federal delegation headed by Member of the Sovereign Council, Lt Gen Ibrahim Jabir, visited the Fata Borno area in North Darfur’s Kutum locality, where 10 people were killed during an attack on the sit-in in Fata Borno camp for the displaced on Monday, July 13.

Gen Jabir was accompanied by representatives of the cabinet, the Forces for Freedom and Change, and the regular armed forces.

At a meeting with the residents of Fata Borno, Lt Gen Abdelrahim Hamdan, the deputy commander of the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), announced the immediate start of an investigation regarding the withdrawal of forces from Fata Borno prior to the attack. He promised to galvanise efforts to collect weapons and protect the agricultural season and the residents of Fata Borno and Kutum.

He asserted that “the preoccupation of the RSF with protecting the revolution has distracted them from collecting weapons”.

Gen Hamdan called on the residents of Fata Borno to name the aggressors, and pledged to arrest them immediately, warning against the provision of malicious information.

Hamdan demanded the formation of a mechanism to consider the situation of the new settlements, vowing to remove all settlements that were established in residential and agricultural areas owned by others.

He explained that “peaceful sit-ins are a legitimate right,” and regretted the loss of life last week.

He said that 90 per cent of Fata Borno’s demands regard security, and called on all residents to coexist and respect each other, explaining that the delegation came to seek justice. He called for the cooperation of all parties to identify the real criminals and instigators, stressing that the delegation will not return until after all security problems are addressed.

Minister of Religious Affairs and Endowments, Nasreldin Mofreh said that the attack on the sit-down of Fata Borno aims to portray the government as weak and that it is unable to protect citizens.

He pledged to implement some service demands urgently, and others will be submitted to the competent ministries to set timetables for their implementation.

He said that the delegation includes representatives of the Ministry of Labour and the Zakat Chamber.

He donated SDG 100,000* for a service fund, and a SDG 100,000 for a youth project.

Settlements

The Fata Borno residents demanded the removal of 37 settlements that have sprung-up within their agricultural lands, which affected the protection of the agricultural season.

They also demanded the provision of health services, education, and proper roads. The residents assert that the bloody events of last week were a result of the withdrawal of protection forces from Fata Borno, claiming that while the collection of illegal weapons began in 2018, “nothing has been done”.

* USD 1 = SDG 55.1375 at the time of posting. As effective foreign exchange rates can vary in Sudan, Radio Dabanga bases all SDG currency conversions on the daily middle US Dollar rate quoted by the Central Bank of Sudan (CBoS).

Radio Dabanga’s editorial independence means that we can continue to provide factual updates about political developments to Sudanese and international actors, educate people about how to avoid outbreaks of infectious diseases, and provide a window to the world for those in all corners of Sudan. Support Radio Dabanga for as little as €2.50, the equivalent of a cup of coffee.