Khartoum: AMNESTY International has called on the international community to consider all forms of peaceful pressure, including targeted sanctions, on members of the Sudanese transitional authority responsible for the Monday massacre of sleeping protesters.
Armed forces under the command of the Transitional Military Council (TMC) attacked peaceful protestors in Khartoum State, firing live bullets and tear gas, setting tents on fire and beating protestors.
“The United Nations Security Council should immediately put pressure on the interim military authorities to end these attacks against peaceful protestors and must consider targeted sanctions on members of the TMC and others involved in the attack,” said Sarah Jackson, Amnesty International’s Deputy Regional Director for East Africa, the Horn and the Great Lakes.
“The Sudanese people suffered for decades under the repressive rule of Omar al-Bashir, and his ousting should have represented a new chapter of respect for human rights.
“Today’s bloodshed shows that the transitional authorities have utterly failed to turn the page on Sudan’s appalling human rights record, and the international community must take immediate action to show this will not be tolerated.”
Amnesty International also called on the African Union Peace and Security Council to convene an emergency meeting to address the situation in the country and ensure respect for human rights and the right to peaceful protest.
The number of people reported dead currently stands at 13 and is growing as more succumb to injuries. More than 100 people are being treated for various injuries, according to the Central Committee of Sudanese Doctors (CCSD). Amnesty International received reports that security forces attacked at least two hospitals close to the sit-in area in Khartoum - Almoalim and Royal Care hospitals - in pursuit of the injured.
