South Sudan Declared “Enemy” By Sudan Parliament
The Sudanese parliament on Monday passed a unanimous resolution declaring the government of Southern Sudan an “enemy.” This move came days after southern Sudanese troops took control of Sudan’s oil-rich area of Heglig on the border.
“The Government of Southern Sudan is an enemy and all state agencies to treat it according to this principle,” said the Parliament in its latest resolution.
The two states signed last month a non-aggression agreement, but since then the situation deteriorated quickly.
Since March 26, 2012, the two armies engaged in a war in the disputed regions around Heglig, each claiming to respond to attacks by the other. This direct confrontation is accompanied by inflammatory statements by authorities from both sides calling for the mobilization of populations to respond to the aggression of the other side.
Added to this, there are mutual accusations regarding the alleged support to armed rebel groups. Thus, Khartoum accuses the Government of South Sudan of supporting rebels of Sudan People’s Liberation Army – North (SPLA-N) operating in Khordofan and South Blue Nile.
As part of the conflict against the rebels of the SPLA-N, Sudanese authorities commit serious violations of human rights that could be described as war crimes or crimes against humanity. These include the blind bombardments of civilians; looting and burning villages, sexual violence and extrajudicial killings.
Ahmed Harun, the governor of South Kordofan has recently given instructions to the Sudanese armed forces clearly suggesting that they should not take prisoners. Harun has been facing an arrest warrant by the International Criminal Court (ICC) since 2007 for his alleged responsibility for the crimes committed in Darfur.
