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Panic as former Sudanese minister wanted for war crimes escapes from Khartoum prison

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A member of former Sudanese military government of ousted president Omar al-Bashir who was declared wanted by the International Criminal Court (ICC) for war crimes and crimes against humanity, has escaped from the Kober prison in the capital, Khartoum, following the war currently going on in the country.

The suspect, Ahmed Haroun was a notorious head of the ruling National Congress Party who led the regime’s infamous counter-insurgency operations in Darfur in the mid-2000s, which was credited with the arbitrary arrest and killing of thousands of Sudanese citizens and opposition figures.

He was arrested alongside other officials of the regime in 2019 following a popular uprising and military coup that toppled the regime of Omar al-Bashir.

Haroun was declared wanted by the ICC and was charged with more than 40 counts of war crimes and crimes against humanity including murder, rape, torture, attacks on civilians and destruction of property, allegedly committed in Darfur in the early-2000s, while he served as Sudan’s State Minister for the Interior and later State Minister for Humanitarian Affairs.

Reports by local media on Wednesday say Haroun and other members of the Islamist regime ousted in 2019 escaped from prison on Tuesday, raising new fears of the former regime officials regrouping.

Haroun, who confirmed his escape from prison in an audio message circulated on social media on Tuesday, was quoted as saying he and a number of former regime figures had left the prison after gunmen stormed the facility on Sunday.

He claimed that he and the other figures decided to leave the prison with the help of prison guards and armed forces, and they had been relocated to a safe place, promising to turn himself into authorities when the situation returned to normal.

The crisis in Sudan has claimed the lives of at least 459 people, with more than 4,000 injured, according to the World Health Organization, since fighting broke out over a week ago.

Metro

Zambia’s ruling party UPND warns against personal attacks on President Hichilema

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Zambia’s ruling party, the UPND, has warned opposition politicians and critics against personal attacks on President Hakainde Hichilema as his meekness should not be mistaken for weakness.

Secretary-General of the UPND, Batuke Imenda, who gave the warning in a statement in Lusaka on Monday, urged political opponents to always engage in mature and issue-based discourse.

Zambia Monitor reports that Imenda’s warning, was directed at the leader of Zambia Must Prosper (ZMP) party, Kelvin Bwalya Fube, whose recent remarks Imenda described as “provocative” and a “feeble attempt to mislead citizens.”

“Provocative words uttered by Kelvin Bwalya against our party and President Hichilema are a clear demonstration of naivety,” Imenda said in the statement.

He further advised Bwalya to abandon personal attacks and focus on substantial political issues.

The UPND Secretary suggested that Bwalya’s attacks stemmed from a desire for relevance amid declining political fortunes, hinting at a possible alignment with former President Edgar Lungu.

“It appears KBF is hoping that Edgar Lungu might support his embattled political career by unjustly attacking President Hichilema,” he said.

Imenda defended the President’s record, highlighting that under Hichilema’s leadership, Zambia’s democratic space had expanded compared to the previous PF administration, which he accused of stifling freedoms.

He noted that while criticism was welcome, it should not devolve into baseless attacks, warning that opposition figures should not misinterpret Hichilema’s restraint as weakness.

Imenda also criticized Bwalya for overlooking the gains in transparency and justice since the change in government, claiming that past regimes were marked by resource mismanagement and corruption.

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Following backlash, Nigerian govt withdraws treason charges against minors

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The Nigerian government has officially withdrawn the treason charges it entered against some minors who participated in the #EndBadGovernance protest that spread across the country from August 1 to the 10th.

The nation was thrown into shock on Friday when the Nigeria Police presented 76 protesters at the Federal High Court in Abuja on charges bordering on treason. Among the suspects were four minors who slumped before they could be arraigned before the court.

This caused serious uproar in the country with Nigerians condemning the government and calling for the unconditional release of the kids and the dismissal of the charges against them.

The decision to withdraw the charges against the underage accused came following a directive by President Bola Tinubu who ordered the immediate withdrawal of the charges and an in-depth investigation into what led to the arrest and detention of the minors.

Tinubu had also ordered the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Prince Lateef Fagbemi, (SAN) to officially take over the case file as well as review the cases following public outcry that came with the arraignment of the minors.

The charges were finally withdrawn on Tuesday at the Federal High Court in Abuja through an application for discontinuance filled by the Director of Public Prosecution of the Federation (DPPF), Mohammed Abubakar, on behalf of the AGF.

According to Abubakar, the discontinuance application was based on provisions of sections 174(1), (b) and (c) of the 1999 Constitution, as amended, and 108 of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act, ACJA, 2015.

The DPPF also applied for further proceedings to be conducted without the presence of the minors in the courtroom, in line with provisions of Section 266(b) of the ACJA, 2015, and Section 1 of the Childs’ Rights Act.

In response, human rights lawyer, Mr. Femi Fanala (SAN), who stood in for the accused as well as other defence lawyers in the matter, did not oppose the applications which promoted the judge, Justice Obiora Egwuatu, to strike out the charges, while the four affected minors were also delisted from the charge sheet.

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