SAF promises decisive victory against rebels soon

May 20, 2013 (KHARTOUM) – The Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) has announced that major victory against rebellion will be declared soon and said it would be a landslide victory which will destroy “the rebels who have committed crimes and atrocities”.

After last April rebel attacks in South and North Kordofan, Sudanese government officials and military carry out a large campaign to recruit volunteers to fight the rebels but also mobilise popular support for the government which faces economic and political difficulties.

Observers say that the killing of some local officials and tribal dignitaries by the rebels facilitated the government efforts.

SAF’s spokesperson, Al-Sawarmi Khaled Saad, told Ashorooq TV on Monday that SAF’s victory at all territories controlled by the rebel Sudan Revolutionary Front (SRF) is drawing near, promising good news for Sudanese people very soon.

He added that rebels continued to spread rumours aimed at deceiving the Sudanese people but to no avail, saying “SAF would cleanse the country of all rebellion and the hour of truth is approaching”.

Saad further praised the Sudanese people for supporting SAF in all military operations zones and the public mobilisation which pervaded throughout Sudan, saying that it had a very strong impact on the men fighting in the frontlines.

In the past, fighting between the rebels and SAF has largely been limited to Darfur, South Kordofan and Blue Nile states bordering South Sudan, which seceded from Sudan in 2011.

But SAF rebels extended last month their attacks to Um Rawaba in North Kordofan state before to redeploys its fighters to Abu-Kershola in South Kordofan on the border with North-Kordofan state.

Since then senior Sudanese military and political officials have been talking about reclaiming all territories controlled by the rebels.

In the same context, Sudan’s defence minister, Abdel- Rahim Mohamed Hussein, and the National Intelligence and Security Services (NISS) director, Mohamed Atta, have visited Nyala, capital of South Darfur state, and its environs to check on the security situation.

The defence minister said in press statements Monday that his visit to Nyala aims at inspecting the security situation, noting that they held a successful meeting with the state’s governor, Adam Mahmoud, and the state’s security committee to check on security situation as well as ensure full coordination between SAF, the police forces, and the NISS forces.

He described the situation in Nyala as stable, saying that residents are living their normal life and security situation in the state is improving continuously.

Darfur has been a flashpoint for lawlessness and violence since rebel movements took up arms against the Khartoum government in 2003.

South Darfur state has witnessed a near total security breakdown in recent months with recurrent incidents of looting, banditry and murder including from pro-government militias.

On March 30, a Sudanese paramilitary force attacked El-Geneina bus stop market in Nyala on mid-day robbing merchants and bystanders at gunpoint.

In March also, a cargo train which was on its way from Nyala to the city of Daein in eastern Darfur has been attacked by unidentified armed robbers near Khor Taan area which is located 60 km east of Nyala.

Last April, the main airport in Nyala came under shelling this from rebels belonging to the Sudan Liberation Army of Minni Minnawi (SLA-MM).

(ST)