Thousands Flee Heavy Fighting In Blue Nile State Thousands of civilians fled from Blue Nile State Capital of El Damazine in Sudan as a result of heavy fighting that erupted on the 1st September 2011 between Sudan People’s Liberation Movement (SPLM- North) and the Sudan Armed Forces (SAF). 04 September 2011 Thousands Flee Heavy Fighting In Blue Nile State Yasir Arman SPLM-North Sudan Secretary General briefing the media [©UNHCR]
By James Deng Dimo WAU, 4th September, 2011 [Gurtong] - Thousands of civilians fled from Blue Nile State Capital of El Damazine in Sudan as a result of heavy fighting that erupted on the 1st September 2011 between Sudan People’s Liberation Movement (SPLM- North) and the Sudan Armed Forces (SAF). The United Nation High Commission for Refugee (UNHCR) indicate that some 2,500-3,000 people (mainly women and children may have crossed into Ethiopian boarder on Friday. The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Assistance (UN OCHA) reports that a large number of civilians are moving out of El Damazine towards the north. The United Nations and some international Non-government organizations have evacuated their staff from El Damazine. UN International and re-locatable staff in Blue Nile have not been ordered to evacuate, but based on the advice from UN Security, they have been authorized to leave if they feel insecure. The fighting reportedly began with an exchange of fire between SAF forces and an armed SPLM-N convoy of vehicles just south of El Damazine. Both sides have blamed the other for starting the fighting. On Saturday, the SPLM –N declared resistance to what it described as a coup against the elected governor of Blue Nile State, Malik Agar, and announcing intensification of its efforts to forge a nationwide alliance to execute regime change agendas. Sudan’s Southern State of Blue Nile on Thursday become the latest flashpoint since South Sudan declared her independence from the north Sudan on 9 July 2011. A similar fighting has been taking place in South Kordofan, an oil- rich State which also borders South Sudan, where fighting between Sudan’s Army and SPLM-N forces violently confronted each other in June which resulted into displacements of many more lives. It is not yet clear who instigated the clashes but both sides accused each other of supporting political wrangle militarily. The SPLM-N claimed that Sudan army started the attacks and targeted the house of Agar who is confirmed serve according to SPLM North Secretary general, Yasir Arman. Sudan’s president Omer el Bashir on Friday declared a State of emergency in the State and later sacked Agar from the position to which he was elected in April 2010, appointing in his place the commander-in-chief of the SAF base in the State capital el – Damazine as a military ruler. In a statement, the SPLM-N’s Secretary- general Yasir Arman said that the unfolding events in the Blue Nile represent a continuation of the attempts by the ruling National Congress Party (NCP) in Khartoum to uproot active and democratic forces in the Sudanese political arena. Arman said that the last episode in this policy appeared in the political military coup against Agar and the stalled popular consultation vote in the area which was promised under the 2005 Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) between Sudan and South Sudan which gained independence as an outcome of same deal. Posted in: Home, Foreign Relations, Humanitarian -- 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.
