Violence erupts in el
Geneina: two killed and one injured
March 07, 2008
On Wednesday, March 5, 2008 at 9 pm, fresh violence
erupted in the capital of West Darfur State, El Geneina.
The assailants were five Sudanese soldiers that opened
fire on three civilians in a market after victims refused
to give the soldiers money and produce. The market,
Al-Zeriba, is located approximately 1 kilometer northeast
of El Geneina’s main hospital. The Sudanese soldiers
opened fire at a close range, killing two victims instantly
and critically injuring a third. The victims, Dajo tribesmen,
were all related and were refugees from Beida, a town
located south of El Geneina. They relocated to El Geneina
after their village was destroyed by the Janjaweed last
year. After the attack, the five soldiers fled in a
military Toyota truck and the victims were rushed to
the nearby hospital. Two victims, Adam Jibril Dawood,
29 and Umar Mohammad Abaker, 40 were pronounced dead
upon arrival. The third victim, Bashir Abdalla Yousif,
39 is still in critical condition.
The fundamentalist Muslim government of Sudan
and its ally, the Arab Janjaweed militia, are responsible
for the ongoing genocide in Darfur as well as sexual
violence and rape against women. Throughout the past
decade, the government of Khartoum is accountable for
the deaths of almost half a million people and the displacement
of over 2 million people. In recent weeks, Khartoum
promoted aggravated violence in Chad and bombed Sirbia,
Sileia, and Abu Surouj, claiming the lives of approximately
300 people and forcing 15,000 to flee.
The Damanga Coalition for Freedom and Democracy
is horrified by this outbreak of violence and strongly
condemns the actions of the Sudanese military. We ask
the government of Sudan to immediately end these attacks
against innocent civilians. Khartoum wields the power
to stop the atrocities and end human suffering. We urge
the international community and the United Nations to
immediately implement the full UNAMID force with a mandate
under Chapter 7. Full deployment and implementation
of this mission are critical to promote stability and
security in the region. Additionally, Damanga beseeches
U.S. President Bush and his administration to fulfill
their promises and to lead the UNAMID forces to stop
the genocide in Darfur.
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