Sudanese FM regrets the killing of its refugees in Cairo
Sudan-Egypt-UN, Politics, 1/2/2006

The Sudanese foreign ministry expressed great regret over the killing of its citizens in clashes with the Egyptian police, in which, according to a statement by the Sudanese foreign ministry extra violence was used.

The Sudanese foreign ministry said that the doors of the countries are open to those wishing to return back, and called on all its citizens who are still in Cairo to return back to their country.

At the beginning of the incident the Sudanese government played down the incident and it said it honors the right of Egypt to defend its security.

The Sudanese minister of state for foreign affairs Ali Ahmad Karti said that Sudan regrets the killing of asylum seekers "needless," and held the UNHCR responsible over what had happened because it had violated earlier promises to ensure their immigration to another country.

The Sudanese minister also considered that the signing of the peace agreement in Sudan made the observers in the sit-in loose the right to seek political asylum in any other state, and called on them to return home.

This came at a time when international calls increased to carry out an independent investigation on the confrontations which resulted in killing 25 Sudanese refugees including women and children.

The Muslim Brothers group and the Egyptian human rights committee deplored the way the Egyptian authorities dealt with the refugees. They called for an international investigations, and "not to repatriate the refugees and to ensure housing for them at no cost to be paid by the UNHCR."

Moreover, scores of human rights activists in Egypt demonstrated condemning the way the security forces dealt with the incident.

However, the Egyptian foreign ministry defended the way the security forces dealt with what it called extremists among the observers in the sit in. It announced transferring the refugees to a camp for the army established in southern Cairo.

The Egyptian foreign ministry disclosed written messages it had received the UNHCR asking for the interference of the authorities to end the protests by asylum seekers. The Egyptian foreign ministry expressed regret over what it called "ready made judgment" after the UNHCR commissioner said there was no justification for "such acts of violence."

Previous Stories:
  UNHCR regrets the death of Sudanese asylum seekers in Egypt   (12/31/2005)
  Sudan calls on its refugees to return home after 20 die   (12/31/2005)
  Ten killed in removing Sudanese refugees by force in Cairo   (12/30/2005)
  Egypt intervenes in Sudan and Chad tensions   (12/26/2005)

Please add a link on your webiste pointing to ArabicNews.com and bookmark ArabicNews.com & subscribe to our daily email news bulletin.

Search