About
Summary of Accounts from Khartoum and Darfur Following May 10 Attack
This document summarizes accounts received as of Monday, May 18, 2008. Darfuris living in the United States and across the world are reporting grim accounts of a systematic program of reprisals and retaliations conducted by the government of Sudan against Darfuris living in Khartoum. In the aftermath of the May 10 attacks by the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM) on the capital, Darfuris living in the capital and the suburb of Omdurman are sharing further details about a series of human rights violations. The government of Sudan’s extrajudicial operations appear to be aimed at the Darfuri community at large in Khartoum and the surrounding areas and do not target only individuals affiliated with the JEM attack. Given the government’s poor human rights record and pattern of indiscriminate use of force against civilian populations during the ongoing genocide in Darfur, sources and analysts fear that the reports of these operations could be only the tip of the iceberg. The harassment and detention of lawyers and journalists in Khartoum also raises serious concerns about the government’s attempt to conceal its operations.Some of these reports have been confirmed by journalists and human rights agencies, while details of other abuses have been compiled by leaders in the diaspora in daily contact with sources on the ground. The human rights violations to date include accounts of widespread detentions and disappearances, summary executions, crackdowns on Darfuri journalists and lawyers, and the looting of Darfuri homes and businesses.
Widespread Detentions and Disappearances
Contacts on the ground began reporting indiscriminate round-ups, detentions, interrogations and torture of Darfuris immediately following the May 10 attacks. Human Rights Watch expressed concern on May 12 about the arrests of more than 100 supporters of the rebel movements or other political opponents of the regime.[1] Since then, the large-scale crackdown has expanded to include individuals not directly affiliated with the JEM attack.
Darfuris in Khartoum and Sudanese human rights organizations have begun collecting the names of those detained and those whom have disappeared in the last week. The Sudan Human Rights Organization released a list of 100 names arrested between May 11 and May 13 [2]. The Sudan Organization Against Torture (SOAT) also reports that individuals believed to be Darfuris are being specifically targeted by the National Intelligence and Security Service. SOAT also provided a list of 11 Darfuris detained in recent days – including Amin Mahmoud Osman (the brother of high-profile human rights activist and parliamentarian Salih Mahmoud Osman). [3]
Personal accounts from members of the diaspora confirm these reports and also claim that Darfuri university students have been specifically targeted and that security forces have made numerous arrests during raids of Darfuri stores and businesses in the Soug Libya (Libya Market) neighborhood in Omdurman. These raids took place as recently as May 16 in the areas of Soba in south Khartoum and Al-Hag Al-Yousif in north Khartoum.
Summary Executions
Diaspora leaders also allege that sources on the ground claim that the security forces have carried out summary executions of Darfuris over the last ten days. On May 15, it was reported that two Darfuri women were shot inside their homes by security forces conducting house-to-house searches. On May 13, the same source reported that security forces shot and killed a Darfuri college student, Mohamed Ahmed Ibrahim, on the streets of the Ombuddah area of Omdurman on account of nothing but his being of Darfuri origin.
In total, Save Darfur has received reports that up to 27 Darfuris have been executed from May 10 through May 13 – although these numbers cannot be confirmed.
Crackdown on Darfuri Journalists and Lawyers
Independent media in Khartoum and Darfuri journalists and lawyers have also been targeted for efforts to reveal the details and extent of these human rights violations. On May 15, Reuters reported that Sudanese authorities shut down the Arabic-language independent newspaper Alwaan for publishing details of the rebel attack on May 10. [4]
In addition to this step, Darfuri sources report that well-known Darfuri journalists have been detained and violently interrogated in Khartoum during the last week. These include Ismail Adam of Al-Sharq Al-Awsat’s office in Khartoum and Al-Ghali Shigaifat, Chairperson for the Darfuri Journalist Association. Other journalists attempting to visit individuals in hospitals in Omdurman recovering from injuries sustained during arrest and subsequent detention have been refused access to these individuals and threatened themselves by the police and security agents.
Darfur human rights defenders attempting to document the abuses of the last week have also been targeted. Most notably, Abdul Shakur Hashim Dirar Kaidanah – a well-known Darfuri lawyer – was arrested this week while at his office in Soug Libya (Libya Market) in Omdurman.
Homes and Stores Looted – Darfuris Afraid to Leave Homes
As part of the large-scale arrests campaign, security forces have raided Darfuri homes and stores. Some of these operations in the immediate days after the attacks have been part of the government’s search for Khalil Ibrahim, leader of JEM, and other rebel fighters purportedly hiding out in the city. Other operations, however, appear to be forms of collective punishment against people of Darfuri origin living in Khartoum and Omdurman. For example, on Tuesday May 13, Darfuri sources in the diaspora claim that security forces bulldozed 16 stores owned by Darfuris in Soug Libya (Libya Market) and 3 stores in El-Sough Al-Shaabi (Folks Market). These Darfuri sources also state that, in addition to widespread arrests, Darfuri men, women, and children were routinely beaten inside their homes during these raids.
As a result of the overall crackdown, many Darfuri families in Khartoum and Omdurman have not left their homes since the May 10 attacks.
Attack in North Darfur – and Rumors of More to Follow
Hearing reports of the crackdown and arrests in Khartoum, Darfuris remain fearful of new attacks in Darfur itself. On May 12, sources report that Janjaweed and government forces together attacked the town of Tawila. While there have been no other confirmed attacks in Darfur, multiple sources on the ground have witnessed a stepped-up mobilization of Janjaweed and security forces in North Darfur.
1. "Mass Arrests After Rebel Attack Raise Concern Government Detains More Than 100 Opponents," Human Rights Watch: http://hrw.org/english/docs/2008/05/13/sudan18812.htm.
2. "Zagawa civilian detainees must be immediately released," Sudan Human Rights Organization 13 May 2008.
3. "Mass Arrests and Reports of Torture in Khartoum Following JEM Attacks," Sudan Organization Against Torture 15 May 2008.
4. "Sudan closes paper for publishing military details," Reuters 15 May 2008.
Every search helps fight Genocide
Find events
