AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL PUBLIC STATEMENT
11 December 2012
Sudan’s civilians in crisis: Indiscriminate attacks and arbitrary arrests pervade Southern Kordofan
Amnesty International is deeply concerned about ongoing indiscriminate attacks by the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the Sudan Peoples Liberation Army-North (SPLA-N) in Sudan’s Southern Kordofan State. This includes indiscriminate aerial bombardments by the SAF and indiscriminate shelling by the SAF and SPLA-N in and around Kadugli, the capital of Southern Kordofan. While thousands of people have fled since fighting intensified in October, many civilians remain effectively trapped in the area.
Food sources, including crops, have been destroyed in bombing attacks and the authorities continue to refuse access for humanitarian aid. Recent reports that people attempting to flee have been arrested are deeply troubling, as are reports that people from the Nuba ethnic group are being arbitrarily detained on the basis of their ethnicity and perceived support from the political wing of the SPLA-N, known as the SPLM-N.