SPLM-N rebels say government warplane crashed in S. Kordofan
December 27, 2014 (KHARTOUM) – The rebel Sudan People’s Liberation Movement-North (SPLM-N) has said that an Antonov warplane belonging to Sudan Armed Forces (SAF) crashed on Thursday in Al-Shai’r area north of South Kordofan state capital, Kadougli.
He pointed the victims of the crash included six officers, saying that SAF’s command was reticent about the incident.
Lodi further said that large numbers of SAF soldiers and officers were injured during the recent clashes, pointing that some of them have been transferred to North Kordofan capital, El-Obeid and Khartoum.
Sudan Tribune was unable to reach SAF’s spokesperson for a comment on these statements. Also the army did not issue a statement on the incident.
Military operations between the two sides have escalated recently in South Kordofan following the African Union’s mediation’s announcement of suspension of the ninth round of talks between the Sudanese government and the SPLM-N on the Two Areas in Addis Ababa.
Earlier this month, SAF acknowledged that SPLM-N had shelled the outskirts of Kadugli using Katyusha rockets.
The two sides also clashed in Balanga area, 10 km from Kadougli besides other clashes in Daldako, al-Atmoor and al-Rusairis.
On Wednesday, the Sudanese president Omer Hassan al-Bashir said the second phase of the “Decisive Summer” military campaign will “get rid of the rebellion and remove its roots”.
In another context, Lodi said that a woman and a baby girl were killed on Christmas eve in an aerial bombing by SAF on Angolu village in Al-Buram district , adding the bombing also destroyed several houses and killed cattle.
SPLM-N called upon the Sudanese people and the forces of change to unite in order to overthrow the regime of the National Congress Party (NCP) and establish the state of citizenship which is based on equality.
South Kordofan and neighbouring Blue Nile state have been the scene of violent conflict between the SPLM-N and SAF since 2011.