Assailant kills 2 guards at Sudan’s presidential palace

November 8, 2014 (KHARTOUM) – An attacker with a sharp object killed two soldiers guarding a gate at Sudan’s presidential palace before being shot dead by other troops on Saturday.

According to a statement issued by the presidential press secretary, Emad Sid Ahmed, the assailant who attempted to penetrate inside the Sudanese presidency, did not respond to calls to stop and crossed the security barrier before he was shot dead by guards.

The statement added that two guards were killed in the attack, pointing the assailant appeared to be “mentally unstable”.

It pointed that president Omer Hassan al-Bashir, was at his official residence in another part of Khartoum at the time of the attack, stressing that authorities continue their intensified investigations to uncover more information about the attacker.

The official spokesman of the Sudan Armed Forces (SAF), Colonel al-Sawarmi Khaled Saad, said the man, identified as Mohamed Tiya Kafi, is a native of Kadugli, capital of South Kordofan state, describing him as “mentally unstable”.

He pointed that the attacker argued with the guards outside the palace because he wanted to pass into a secured area.

“When the guards prevented him from passing, he stabbed a guard with a sharp object, then seized a rifle and started firing. The shooting left two guards dead, and prompted others to return fire and shoot the man,” Khalid said.

He said that there were no repercussions to the attack and no subsequent gatherings outside the palace, noting that police were deployed to prevent any impact or disturbance.

The heavy shooting caused panic in the area, leading nearby shop owners to close their businesses.

(ST)