Sovereign Council member condemns looting in N. Darfur, violence on protesters
December 31, 2021 (KHARTOUM) – Sovereign Council member and head of the Sudanese Revolutionary Front (SRF) al Hadi Idris condemned the recent armed looting in North Darfur and the excessive use of violence against journalists and demonstrators in Khartoum.
Armed men in El Fasher looted a former UNAMID camp on December 24, followed by a similar attack on a World Food Program (WFP) storehouse on December 28.
The State Security Committee led by Governor Nimr Abdel Rahman arrested several people involved in the looting.
In a statement to Sudan Tribune, Idris strongly condemned the looting of the UNAMID site and the WFP warehouse in El Fasher.
“I directed the state’s security committee to quickly identify the perpetrators and bring them to justice,” he said.
The State Security Committee acknowledged the involvement of some signatory groups in the attacks but stopped short of disclosing the name of the movements.
After the attack, sources told Sudan Tribune that fighters from SLM of Minni Minnawi were involved in the looting.
For his part, Minnawi issued a statement to condemn the looting and directed to investigate the looting.
Governor Abdel Rahman had previously called on the armed movements to withdraw their forces from the city. However, the fighters ignored his demand and remained in their positions near the UNAMID site.
The repeated attacks forced the State Governors to deploy combatants from his own group SLM-Transitional Council in the strategic sites in El-Fasher.
Until recently SLM-TC forces were stationed outside the state capital.
Brutal crackdown
Also, the member of the Sovereign Council condemned the excessive use of force against peaceful protesters on December 30.
“We further condemn the attacks on media professionals,” he said
“I have directed the police to arrest those responsible for the violence and to hold them accountable,” he added.
The security forces used live ammunition and tear gas to disperse protesters.
Five people were killed by gunshots and over 200 wounded.
The security forces, in a new development, attacked the offices of several TV channels and beat journalists to punish them for covering the brutal crackdown on demonstrators.
(ST)