The Slaughter Yard in Khartoum

An elderly man is repeatedly being caned, whipped and beaten by three young men in officers uniforms. The man raises his arms in a show of peace clearly beseeching them to stop, but the beating does not stop and in the video that has gone viral a cane breaks as it hits his hip. This incessant, merciless act is witnessed by armed militia in Toyota pick up trucks,now notoriously associated with the ruthless former regime and current Janjaweed of Western Sudan.

This is only one of the tens of horrendous incidents that took place on the last fasting day of Ramadan. The timing the Transitional Military Council (TMC) selected to attack the peaceful protestors in the sit-in is clearly premeditated and carefully planned out. It is a time when people go back to their homes and celebrate with their families the end of Ramadan and the beginning of Eid (Islamic festival). Hence the protest site had less civilians occupying the Al Ghiyadah (the area in front of the military headquarters). Hundreds of peaceful protestors camped outside the Military HQ since 3rd April, day and night guarding, protecting, feeding, healing, educating, cleaning, looking after all who pass by the area. The atmosphere of peacefulness that surrounded the zone became a hub for artists, musicians, nurses, doctors, lawyers, students and the unemployed, all races, all age groups, all genders came to be as one for the first time in over three decades of dictatorship rule. They felt a sense of belonging and patriotism, many generations never experienced before. Along with the military these simple civilians overthrew an atrocious dictatorship that ruled for 30 years committing brutal crimes against humanity, many in the world are not aware of.

As a Sudanese citizen who witnessed the climb and claim to power of regimes since the 80s in the political arena, very little has changed for dictatorial rule. Until 2010, the largest country in Africa went through adverse events and much has been suppressed, but the Sudanese people said enough is enough! The regimes, like locusts have milked the country dry of resources and wealth in every form reached record levels, depleting the entire nation of everything and maintaining a closed off stance from the world. More will now be revealed, retold and shared but for the moment, and the fact that social media helps disseminate the truth, the crimes will no longer go unaccounted for.

To you the world, this is but one of hopefully more articles that recount the battle between unarmed citizens and heavily armed mercenaries, who are raiding and holding the country and its people hostage.

All air space has been frozen, no flights in and out of the country. Unfortunately, it is claimed that a senior civil servant of the Sudanese Aviation Authority has been executed by Hemedti’s men when he refused to break the civil disobedience. The execution has been said took place at his home in front of his wife and children. All foreign nationals have been told to evacuate, internet communication has been disrupted and even partially stopped. But this is what happened and is happening in the last three days.

The attack on the civilians at Al Ghiyadah started around 5:00 am. A young man is woken up at the protest site with kicks, sticks to his body, slaps, intimidation and verbal abuse. The video statement of this gentleman is from a hospital as he is being treated from the injuries received. The front scalp of his head is shaved off haphazardly as he tells that the militia group who beat him mocked him and threatened to leave a scar by cutting open part of his head.

Another video of a wounded man receiving treatment for a bullet shattering his leg as he tried to save a fleeing child who sought refuge in his home and was being beaten by armed militia. As the wounded man tried to intervene he was blatantly beaten and shot in the leg within his own house. He comments interestingly enough that these militia speak a strange Arabic and that he was unable to pin point their origin. Several other sources mention specific Central and West African countries that send in assassins and groups of young men to carry out the work of the Rapid Security Force (RSF).

Many incidents of sexual assault have come to light, the most prominent concerned the medical staff working at the make-shift clinic set up at Al Ghiyadah. All the medical staff that work there, doctors, nurses, pharmacists, paramedic volunteer on a duty rota, helping all those in need at the sit-in. On the 3rd June the staff of the clinic were violently attacked, the male doctors were whipped, caned, stamped on while some of the female medical staff were sexually assaulted and raped. Another disturbing fact is that ambulances that came to the protest site collected tens of corpses, and dumped into the Nile river that runs nearby. Not two days later some of these bodies have been reclaimed and found to be tied down by rocks and cement blocks. Over 40 bodies are said to have been thrown into the river and many still unaccounted for. The Sudan Doctors Committee asserted the number of corpses retrieved and the condition they were found in. Hundreds of wounded victims were not permitted to receive treatment at the sit-in or even when they managed to reach hospitals. Doctors and medical staff were ordered not to help the injured and threatened at gun point to leave. Those who continued to work were beaten to an extent where they themselves needed medical attention. The militia entered two hospitals, opened fire and destroyed many of the equipment. These acts have led to doctors and nurses fearing to attend their work leaving patients at the hands of medical students. Since the slaughter on the 3rd of June road barricades have been set up throughout the city on all main roads and a nationwide civil disobedience has come into effect. The country is now at a standstill and instead of celebrating the Eid the civilians are in mourning. Those brave civilians who set up road blocks or still gather in the streets of Khartoum chanting the slogans of the revolution have seen forces in trunk like vehicles. A visual investigator at New York Times identified these vehicles as NIMR Ajban 440As which are manufactured in the United Arab Emirates. In this regard it is worth mentioning that in the end of April 2019 Saudi Arabia and the UAE have given three billion Dollars of Aid to the TMC in order to facilitate the deteriorating economic conditions of Sudan.

Today is the third day of the Eid protestors and activists are still being detained and in many cases have also gone missing. The Sudanese Revolution continues and despite the circumstances and challenging conditions, the people are maintaining the peaceful stance. The nation is now a colony of the ruthless and violent Janjaweed Militia Junta that has sneaked into power, fundamentally splitting the National Military Forces in to sub factions, by allying generals and senior officers. Today Sudan is a battle ground not only for civilian rule, but for freedom from the tight grip of rogue desert pirates in the guise of a legitimate so called army. Alas, the Islamic festival for the Sudanese has become known as ‘The Eid of Bloodshed’.