♦ This week’s news in brief ♦
A compact weekly digest of Dabanga Sudan’s news highlights from Darfur and Sudan
Men stand on the deserted streets of Khartoum, following an escalation in crack downs on protests on Monday 3 June by the Transitional Military Council (social media)
A compact weekly digest of Dabanga Sudan's news highlights from Darfur and Sudan
General strikes took place this week, while some commentators began to speculate on a loss of momentum in the opposition movement. Despite the ongoing internet shutdown, documentation of the break-up of Khartoum sit-in has revealed humanitarian violations by militia. Here's your weekly roundup of Sudan:
♦ Violations, rapes by militiamen documented despite internet shutdown
June 6 – 2019 KHARTOUM Witnesses have continued to post video footage on social media of violence by members of the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), Sudan’s main militia, in Khartoum and other cities in the early hours of Monday morning. On Wednesday, the Transitional Military Council (TMC) continued to block the internet for the third day in a row. Many parties have expressed their concern about the blocking of telephone calls and internet services provided by Canar and Sudatel, however news is still filtering through as people resort to Virtual Private Network (VPN) services.
Video recordings and statements of eyewitnesses reported shooting with live bullets, rapes of women and boys, house raids, plundering of shops, and theft of personal belongings. Mustafa Ahmed told Radio Dabanga that six members of the RSF militia wearing military uniforms broke into their home at Hillet Hamad in Khartoum North on the pretext of tracking a number of young people and shot him in the leg. He added that the RSF militiamen severely beat a number of children and young people as well.
Activist Amira Osman reported five cases of rape during the dismantling of the sit-in on Monday. Activist Nazim Siraj who is a specialist in monitoring violations reported that five of the rape cases (three girls and two boys) were taken to the Royal Care Hospital in Khartoum. He said he was able to confirm that one rape occurred during the sit-in.
♦ Op-ed: Sudan at a Crossroads
The unprecedented violence in Sudan’s capital Khartoum in the past few days has led to a stand-off between the Transition Military Council (TMC) who took over after President Omar Al Bashir was ousted on April 11, and the Sudanese people demanding democracy. This was a calculated move from the TMC to limit the leverage of the opposition forces with the end of the sit-ins not just in Khartoum but in cities throughout the country. It certainly emptied the streets, but it may be a pyrrhic victory in the long run. The people still have an ace up their sleeves and that is civil disobedience – people staying at home and refusing to work, paralysing the economy. This move already brought the country to a standstill at the end of May and the opposition intend to do so again next week.
While the TMC are counting on the fact that the people will not be able to maintain this forever, there is a real danger they do not understand the level of desperation of the people after the near economic collapse that prompted this revolution in the first place.
Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the contributing author and do not necessarily reflect the position of Radio Dabanga.
More news from Radio Dabanga:
Sudan-wide civil disobedience: Major shut-down of Govt offices, commerce, industry
June 11 – 2019 SUDAN The second day of the civil disobedience campaign witnessed a large-scale response by the Sudanese in the cities of Sudan and its …
Sudan junta ‘retires’ 98 senior NISS officers
June 11 – 2019 KHARTOUM Sudan’s ruling Transitional Military Council (TMC) has referred 98 senior officers of the National Intelligence and Security Service …
AFC: preconditions must be met before negotiations can restart
June 10 – 2019 KHARTOUM The Alliance for Freedom and Change (AFC) will only restart negotiations with the Transitional Military Council if the TMC assumes …
Heavy rains cause destruction in eastern Jebel Marra
June 10 – 2019 JEBEL MARRA Heavy rains accompanied by wind and dust caused a lot of destruction in the area of Libei, which is home to more than 20,000 displaced …
Arrested SPLM-N leaders deported to South Sudan
June 10 – 2019 KHARTOUM The Transitional Military Council (TMC) has deported three leaders of the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement-North under the leadership of …
Sudan prepared for general strike today
June 9 – 2019 SUDAN In a statement on Friday, the Sudanese Professionals Association (SPA) called on all Sudanese not to go to work, starting on Sunday, not to deal with …
Diaspora demos damn Sudan junta
June 9 – 2019 THE HAGUE / GENEVA / WASHINGTON / BEIRUT / ALGIERS Members of the international Sudanese diaspora have taken to the streets of cities including The Hague …
Amnesty International: RSF must withdraw from Sudan capital
June 7 – 2019 KHARTOUM Amnesty International has urged the Transitional Military Council “to immediately withdraw all members of the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) government militia from …
Khartoum massacre: Death toll at 100 as 40 bodies pulled from Nile
June 5 – 2019 KHARTOUM At least 40 bodies have been pulled from the Nile, according to reports today by the Sudan Doctors Central Committee, who estimate that more …
Sudan civil disobedience: West Kordofan oil field workers down tools
June 5 – 2019 EL SALAM LOCALITY Reports are being received of workers associations answering the call for civil disobedience in Sudan, following the violent dispersal of the …
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