A top Sudanese general vowed on Sunday to send to the “gallows” those who carried out a deadly crackdown on protesters earlier this month that killed dozens and left hundreds wounded.
In a speech broadcast live on state television, Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, deputy chief of the ruling military council said “We are working hard to take those who did this to the gallows.” He also added that whoever committed any fault will be held accountable.
On June 3rd, protesters in their thousands who for weeks had camped outside the Khartoum military headquarters were violently dispersed by armed men in military fatigues, according to witnesses.
According to doctors linked to the protest movement, over 100 people were killed that day in Khartoum, while the health ministry put the nationwide death toll at 61.
On Thursday, General Shamseddine Kabbashi who is the spokesman for the military council, expressed “regret” over the crackdown.
But the council insists it never gave the order for the dispersal, saying its initial plan was to purge an area near the protest camp where people are said to sell drugs.
“The planning of the operation of Colombia (area) was done by military and security authorities,” the council said in a statement late Saturday.
“We assure you that the council is keen to investigate minute by minute facts through its investigation committee.”
Spokesperson for the investigative committee, Brigadier Abderrahim Badreddine, said initial findings showed “officers and soldiers of different ranks from regular forces entered the sit-in without any orders from their superiors.”
“They were not part of the troops who were ordered to clean Colombia,” he told state television.
The crackdown has been condemned internationally, with several countries including the United States calling for an independent probe into the killings.