Sudan forms a fact finding commission

The Sudanese foreign ministry has formed a fact finding commission to investigate over what was recently stated that the US has evacuated into the US a great number of Sudanese children, who were kidnapped by the rebel movement led by John Garang.

The committee's chairman Methyanaq Melwal, who is also the director of peace department at the foreign ministry, said in a statement to the Sudanese daily al-Rai al-Am issued on Monday that the aim of setting up this committee is to make sure that this information is correct and to specify facts relating to this matter. He said that the committee will, during the few coming days start its missions. On the other hand, the Sudanese minister of state at the social planning ministry Shoul Dabanq said that in case that it was proved that the Sudanese children are evacuated to the US, this behavior will be considered a defiance to the national sovereignty and a violation of rights.

Earlier, news reports said that the UNHCR had evacuated some 3800 Sudanese children from Kakouma camp, in North Kenya to the US in coordination with the US State Department.

These children had escaped from compulsory military services in the lines of the rebellions movement and settled in areas situated to the north of Kenya.

On the other hand, Sudan's foreign minister Mustafa Othman Ismael has stressed that Sudan has handed over the UN secretary General Kofi Annan a protest against the US over the US under secretary of state unlicensed visit to Sudan with out the permission of the Sudanese government.

Ismael added that a copy of the protest was handed to the Secretary General of the Arab League, the Organization of the Islamic Conference OIC and the Organization of African Unity to inform these organizations of the said violation of the Sudanese sovereignty by the US.