Sudanese military hospitals refuse to treat militiamen

Military hospitals in El Obeid and Khartoum have refused to treat militiamen wounded during the recent clashes with rebel groups in South Kordofan. Residents of El Obeid, the capital of North Kordofan, are complaining about assaults by militiamen. Speaking to Radio Dabanga a resident of El Obeid said that militiamen attack and rob civilians in their homes and on the streets. “Those militiamen returning from the war in South Kordofan, enter the city market fully armed and trade, shop, and take food from restaurants without paying”. The source also reported that militiamen fired shots into the air in front of the El Obeid military hospital when the hospital’s director refused to treat those militiamen wounded during battles with rebel groups in South Kordofan. The random shootings sparked panic among the patients and visitors of the hospital. The residents of El Obeid have called on the authorities to immediately expel those militiamen. Khartoum A number of militiamen and their injured companions stormed the Military Medical Hospital in Khartoum. They forcibly entered the Orthopaedics section and expelled the patients in response to the hospital management’s refusal to treat the wounded militiamen, considering them civilians. File photo: Militia commander Mohamed Hamdan, ‘Hemeti’ Related:SRF ‘disperse army battalion’ in South Kordofan; 35,000 displaced (4 December 2013)SPLM-N kills 15 Sudanese troops in Abu Karshola, South Kordofan (23 November 2013)