Help our local partners realise their vision of hope for their communities
6 June 2019
Security forces stormed a protest camp in the Sudanese capital Khartoum on Monday morning. A group of doctors linked to the opposition said 13 “martyrs” had been killed in Monday’s violence, and that at least 116 people had been wounded. It said security forces had surrounded one Khartoum hospital and had opened fire at another where they were pursuing protesters. There are also reports that RSF armed militia are preventing wounded and injured protesters from seeking medical treatment.
This outbreak of attacks against peaceful protesters is the worst violence since the overthrow of President Omar al-Bashir in April. According to Reuters, footage shared on social media showed chaotic scenes of people fleeing through streets as sustained bursts of gunfire crackled in the air. People rushed to carry away those who had been hit.
A Sudanese intellectual leader recently said that the current turmoil in that country presents “a time of great hopes and terrifying fears.”
“The protesters holding a sit-in in front of the army general command are facing a massacre in a treacherous attempt to disperse the protest,” said the Sudanese Professionals Association, the group that has spearheaded protests.
This is an ongoing situation where crimes against humanity are rife. While much of the focus is on Khartoum, the brutality of the regime also continues in Darfur, the Nuba Mountains and elsewhere in Sudan.
The courageous protesters have stoically maintained their endeavours since December to oust the brutal Islamist regime peacefully, paying a high price for their struggle for freedom. It would be a horrendous tragedy if the regime resorts to even greater violence to end their peaceful initiatives whose aims are the achievement of freedom, justice and equality for all.
I urge all individuals who care for the people of Sudan as well as politicians and others with influence to stand now in solidarity with the people of Sudan – and the Sudanese diaspora in the UK and around the world – who courageously remain committed to the achievement of their peaceful and long-justified objectives.
The Baroness Cox, Independent member of the House of Lords and CEO of HART (Humanitarian Aid Relief Trust).