Sudanese security raid house of South Sudan’s VP in Khartoum
April 15, 2012 (KHARTOUM) – Sudan’s security services in Khartoum have raided the house of the South Sudan’s Vice President, Riek Machar, arresting people and looting its movable assets, Juba has claimed.
Juba also claimed that a young girl found in the house was intentionally “mishandled” by the Sudanese security. The girl called Ayom is believed to be from the Dinka tribe and not related to the Vice President and was staying at Machar’s house while trying to get her school certificates in Khartoum. Her age is unknown.
Her whereabouts and those of his relatives was also unclear on Sunday evening. The office of the South Sudan’s Vice President called on Sudan’s government to respect human rights of individuals and urged for their release.
The security personnel took the vehicles at the residence as well as refrigerators. It was not clear why the house was raided.
South Sudan’s Minister for Information, Barnaba Marial Benjamin, said that Sudan’s National Intelligence and Security Services “came to the house [of] Dr. Riek Machar in Khartoum and took away everything.”
As well as taking furniture and cars they also “took a young boy of about 15 years who was seriously sick. He had just been operated [on]. It was open heart operation”, Marial said.
He described Khartoum’s actions as internationally “unacceptable and unjustifiable”.
However, the minister called on South Sudanese authorities not to replicate the same behavior even though he said Khartoum was mistreating South Sudanese nationals in Khartoum.
“We call on our citizens not to do the same. The lives of the Sudanese nationals in the republic of South Sudan are directly under responsibility of our government. They should not be touched. They deserve the same treatment we have been according them. They have the right to be protected with all their properties”, Marial said, describing South Sudan as a law abiding country.
The incident is likely to further increase tensions between the two nations who are currently fighting over an oil producing region on the north-south border claimed by both countries.
The clashes are the worst since South Sudan seceded in July last year. Despite partition occurring peacefully relations have deteriorated significantly since the turn of the year with Juba stopping oil production in January accusing Khartoum of confiscating its oil.
Khartoum claim the oil was taken as payment for what it described as unpaid transportation fees. Ongoing skirmishes in border areas erupted in late March when, in response to what South Sudan’s army (SPLA) says was a land and air assault on Unity State, they attacked Heglig – a disputed oil-rich area.
On Tuesday the SPLA took control of the area and have, according to Juba, held off attempts by the Sudan Armed Forces (SAF) to wrestle back control of the vital Heglig oil field, which supplies half of the country’s 110,000 barrels per day of oil production.
Juba has rejected international calls to withdraw from the area, with president Salva Kiir insisting he will not order a retreat until either a UN force is deployed there or he receives guarantees SAF will not use the area to launch attacks on South Sudan’s oil fields in Unity State.
(ST)