Sudan sentences more 11 Darfur rebels to death over May attack

April 22, 2009 (KHARTOUM) — A Sudanese special court today sentenced to death more eleven Darfur rebels for their participation in an attack on Khartoum in May last year.

More than 220 people were killed during the fighting when the rebel Justice and Equality Movement attacked Omdurman, Khartoum’s twin city on May 10, 2008.

Today’s verdict brings to more than 70 the number of the rebels condemned to death. Abdel Aziz Abu Usher, a half brother of the JEM chairman is among those who are sentenced since last year in a series of trials following the attack.

“The court has found the accused guilty… and has decided to impose the harshest punishment, we sentence them to the death penalty by hanging” Judge Isam Ismail said on Wednesday. The court also acquitted other five rebels. Also one defendant is referred to a juvenile court and another to mental hospital.

The court stated that the rebels were found guilty of violence against the state and illegal possession of arms.

Last February, the Sudanese government and the rebel JEM signed a goodwill agreement in Doha providing that the two parties would exchange prisoners of war. Both sides released some of the detained prisoners, as a goodwill gesture.

However, JEM suspended in March its participation at Doha peace process to protest the eviction of 13 aid groups. They said Khartoum had breached the signed confidence building deal.

Last week, another court sentenced to death some 10 rebels.

JEM spokesperson Ahmed Hussein Adam said last week that the death sentences breach the Doha agreement according to which the detained rebels are prisoners of war. He further added these sentences breach the Geneva Convention on the POWs

Las August, the UN envoy to Sudan Ashraf Qazi, voiced concern over the legal proceeding in the three special courts because they didn’t observe fair trial guarantees. He said that the rebels were only given access to lawyers after the beginning of the trials, the concessions were obtained and the defendants had no communication with lawyers and the courts refused to probe allegation of ill treatment.

Different Sudanese political parties urged the ruling National Congress Party to release the sentenced rebels as a good will gesture and to invite rebels to attends a national conference on Darfur to end the five years conflict.

Observers say Sudanese government wants to show it is not affected by the arrest warrant for President Bashir on war crimes and crimes against humanity by the International Criminal Court. They further stressed that the sentenced rebels still can be pardoned by the Sudanese President.

The attack on Khartoum was the first time a rebel group had brought their fight to the capital. The rebels were stopped at bridges over the river Nile a few kilometres (miles) from the presidential palace and army headquarters.

(ST)