Omdurman 30 September (Darfur 24) The Emergency Lawyers Group in Sudan revealed on Friday attempts by the Sudanese armed forces to impose a military siege on civilians in Ombada locality in Omdurman.
The group said in a statement seen by Darfur 24 that it had received a number of complaints from residents stating that the armed forces had been trying for some time to impose a siege on ombada locality by deploying a number of outposts inside Karari locality and in the contact areas between it and Ombda locality to restrict the movement of goods and foodstuffs from Karari locality to Ombda locality, which is under the control of the Rapid Support Forces RSF.
It stated that through investigation and hearing the testimonies of a number of eyewitnesses residing in the Karari locality, it was proven that the armed forces deploy a number of outposts in “Sabreen Market,” “Wad Al-Bushra Station,” “Humaidan Station,” and “Al-Roumi Station” in the locality, and that these outposts are confiscate traders goods and food supplies that are destined to the Ombada locality.
He added: We also listened to the testimonies of a number of merchants who confirmed that some officers and non-commissioned officers of the armed forces were asking some merchants for sums of money in exchange for allowing the passage of goods.
International humanitarian law prohibits starvation and food deprivation of civilians as one of the internationally prohibited methods of war. This behavior violates the principle of distinction contained in the additional Protocols of 1977, Article 54 (1) of Additional Protocol I, Article 14 of Additional Protocol II. The Statute of the International Criminal Court also prohibits intentional starvation. For civilians in Article 8(2)(b)(25).
Emergency lawyers denounced this internationally criminal behavior that both parties to the conflict have been adopting since the outbreak of the armed conflict, and the statement continued, “We constantly remind the leadership of both parties that violating international humanitarian law and committing more crimes that are documented will not be subject to a statute of limitations, and no one will succeed in escaping punishment.”