Khartoum — Army soldiers in Khartoum are reportedly targeting young Misseriya tribesmen as they consider them supporters of the Rapid Support Forces (RSF). According to the Sudanese Combating Violence Against Women Unit, the rape cases registered by the unit "represent only two per cent of the actual numbers".

A young Misseriya was shot dead by army soldiers in Abu Hamama, Khartoum, on May 20, after they asked him about his tribal background, Hayat Tahrirelsham told Radio Dabanga.

Because many RSF soldiers have been recruited from the Misseriya and Rizeigat tribes in the western and southern parts of Sudan, members of the Sudan Armed Forces (SAF) consider all these tribesmen as "supporters of the enemy," she explained.

Two other young Misseriya tribesmen were, in separate incidents, seized by army soldiers in Omdurman and taken to an unknown destination.

The Darfur Bar Association (DBA) in a press statement yesterday condemned "the targeting, killing, and detention" of young Misseriya "arbitrarily suspected of supporting the RSF" in the country's capital.

The lawyers warned of the negative effects of "the systematic targeting of members of the Misseriya tribe", and called for the immediate release of the detainees.

Rapes, abductions

The Combating Violence Against Women Unit at the Ministry of Social Affairs, reported in a press release on Saturday that it recorded 12 new rape cases in the Sudanese capital, "bringing the cases of sexual violence documented by us to 36 cases in Khartoum only".

The unit has also received increased reports of abductions and gang-rapes in Khartoum targeting girls between 12 and 17 years old. "Reporters of most of the incidents point their fingers to armed men wearing RSF uniforms."

Men wearing RSF uniforms have also been targeting homes of Eritrean and Ethiopian refugee women in Omdurman and Khartoum North (Khartoum Bahri).

The cases documented by the Combating Violence Against Women Unit "represent only two per cent of the actual numbers of cases of sexual violence in Khartoum."

No new information has been obtained from Darfur, the unit said.

Radio Dabanga reported last month that since the armed conflict between the SAF and RSF broke out on April 15, forces of the warring parties are detaining activists and volunteers in Khartoum.