UN report incriminates Sudan army’s acts in South Kordofan, calls for ICC probe
* Article
* Comments (8)
email Email
print Print
pdfSave
separation
increase
decrease
separation
separation
*
*
*
*
July 18, 2011 (KHARTOUM) – Acts committed by the Sudan army and its
allied militias during localized violence in South Kordofan State may
amount to “war crimes and crimes against humanity”, a UN report has
said, recommending a probe into the alleged atrocities by the
International Criminal Court (ICC).
JPEG - 8.1 kb
International Criminal Court (ICC) Prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo
speaks during a press conference at the ICC in The Hague, Netherlands,
Tuesday, June 28, 2011 (AP Photos)
Violent clashes erupted on June 5 in Sudan’s oil-producing state of
South Kordofan between north Sudan army known as the Sudanese Armed
Forces (SAF) and forces of the Sudan People’s Liberation Army (SPLA)
According to a report prepared by the UN Mission in Sudan (UNMIS) on
the human rights situation during South Kordofan violence, the
fighting appears to have been triggered by SAF’s attempt to forcibly
disarm SPLA members, in contrast with SAF’s claims that the fighting
broke out after SPLA members raided a local police station and stole
small arms.
The report accused both parties to the conflict of engaging in acts
against civilians, but it singled out SAF’s conduct as “especially
egregious,” saying that the army and its allied paramilitary forces
“have targeted members and supporters of the SPLM/A, most of whom are
Nubans and other dark skinned people.”
UNMIS report documented a wide-range of atrocities it said were
committed, particularly by SAF, against civilians as well as UNMIS
staff.
According to the report, these violations of national and
international law include aerial bombardments, forced displacement,
abductions; house-to-house searches; arbitrary arrests and detentions;
targeted killings and summary executions.
It also details reports of mass graves; systematic destruction of
dwellings and attacks on churches. The UN previously estimated that
more than 70,000 have been displaced by South Kordofan fighting.
The report says that the violence has resulted in a significant loss
of lives, highlighting thirty-seven individual incidents of
extrajudicial killings or death resulting from attacks on civilians.
It further said that the mission had received credible reports that
extrajudicial killings have targeted people in Southern Kordofan who
are affiliated with the SPLA and SPLM, most of whom are Nuba people.
The report said that the acts it described may amount to war crimes
and crimes against humanity under national and international laws.
A number of recommendations were made by the report, including that
the UN Security Council “mandates the establishment of a commission of
inquiry or other appropriate investigative authority, including the
Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court, to conduct a
comprehensive investigation into the violence in Southern Kordofan and
violations of human rights and humanitarian laws and to identify the
perpetrators or those who bear the greatest responsibility, with the
view to bringing them to justice.”
If the report recommendation is adopted by the UNSC, it will be the
second time that the ICC has been authorized to get involved in Sudan.
The Hagie-based court has already issued arrest warrants for three
Sudanese individuals, including president Al-Bashir and South Kordofan
governor Ahmad Harun on account of the atrocities committed by
government forces in the western region of Darfur.
(ST)
--
You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "JFD
info" group.
To post to this group, send email to [email protected].
To unsubscribe from this group, send email to
[email protected].
For more options, visit this group at
http://groups.google.com/group/jfdinfo?hl=en.
