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Sudanese forces deployed around Khartoum's army headquarters. Photo: AFP

China and Russia block UN action after ‘bloody massacre’ in Sudan

  • The UN Security Council met after nearly 60 people were killed during a ‘clean-up operation’ on pro-democracy protesters in Sudan’s capital
  • Sudan protesters reject army election plan, promise more civil disobedience
Africa

China, backed by Russia, blocked a bid at the UN Security Council to condemn the killing of civilians in Sudan and issue a pressing call from world powers for an immediate halt to the violence, diplomats said.

During a closed-door council meeting Tuesday, Britain and Germany circulated a press statement that would have called on Sudan’s military rulers and protesters to “continue working together towards a consensual solution to the current crisis,” according to the draft.

But China firmly objected to the proposed text while Russia insisted that the UN body should await a response from the African Union, diplomats said.

Russian Deputy Ambassador Dmitry Polyanskiy said the proposed statement was “unbalanced” and stressed the need to be “very cautious in this situation”.

“We don’t want to promote an unbalanced statement. It could just spoil the situation,” Polyanskiy told reporters after the two-hour meeting.

We don’t want to promote an unbalanced statement. It could just spoil the situation
Dmitry Polyanskiy

The UN Security Council met a day after nearly 60 people were killed and hundreds wounded when security forces ended a weeks-long sit-in outside the army headquarters in Khartoum by protesters demanding an end to military rule.

The Sudanese Professionals Association, which spearheaded nationwide protests that started in December, said Monday’s crackdown amounted to a “bloody massacre”.

After the UN Security Council failed to agree, eight European countries said in joint statement that they “condemn the violent attacks in Sudan by Sudanese security services against civilians”.

Belgium, Britain, France, Germany, Italy, Poland, The Netherlands and Sweden said the military council’s “unilateral announcement to cease negotiations, appoint a government and call for elections within a too short period of time is of great concern”.

Sudanese protesters help a wounded man. Photo: AFP

“We call for an agreed transfer of power to a civilian-led government as demanded by the people of Sudan,” said the European statement.

John Bolton, US President Donald Trump’s national security adviser, called the attack “abhorrent”.

UN diplomats looked to a meeting of the African Union Peace and Security Council on Wednesday to provide a response to the crisis.

Sudan’s so-called Transitional Military Council has ruled the country since the ouster of President Omar al-Bashir on April 11, following months of protests against his three-decade authoritarian rule.

Negotiations between the military rulers and protest leaders broke down over disagreements on whether a planned transitional body would be headed by a civilian or a military figure.

Sudanese forces escort civilians in Khartoum. Photo: AP

Army ruler General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan announced Tuesday that he was scrapping a plan for a three-year transition period and would hold elections within nine months.

Sudan’s military council also said it “regrets” the events of Monday, calling it a “clean-up operation” that went wrong.

The Sudanese Doctors Union accused security forces of attacks on hospitals and staff across the country, and alleged some women had been raped in an area of the capital without giving details of how the group had learned of the assaults.

Madani Abbas Madani, a leader of the Declaration of Freedom and Change Forces (DFCF) opposition alliance, said an open-ended civil disobedience campaign would continue to try to force the council from power.

Additional reporting by Reuters and The Washington Post

This article appeared in the South China Morning Post print edition as: China and Russia block UN action to condemn violence in Khartoum
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