Hamdok: Cooperation of civilians and security forces crucial in Darfur

Sudanese Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok says adequate cooperation between civilians and security forces will help plug the gap left by departing UNAMID troops.

Khartoum was given the responsibility of taking over security control of the once restive south-western region of Darfur following the end of mandate of the special UN-African Union hybrid mission last December.

But the Sudanese Premier said on Monday that the gap will only be filled if civilians and security forces work on the same side.

Hamdok was speaking to police chiefs on Monday generally on Sudan’s rehabilitation programme for Darfur and other parts of the country ravaged by conflict, which, according to him, will be split into five priorities including reviving the economy, addressing humanitarian distress as well as addressing security challenges.

He urged the police to help control markets and said that the second priority of his government will be to bring lasting peace.

Darfur had been a battleground between government forces or militia allied to Omar al-Bashir and rebels. Some of Bashir’s crackdown on the rebels earned him an indictment at the International Criminal Court for war crimes and crimes against humanity.