Sudan sentences 8 to death for attack near capital

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Sudan sentences 8 to death for attack near capital

AP News
Sunday, August 17, 2008

A Sudanese court convicted and sentenced to death two senior members of
a Darfur rebel group and six others for their role in an attack near the
capital three months ago, court officials and a lawyer said Sunday.

Defense lawyer Kamal al-Jazouli said the eight convicted include Abdel
Aziz Ushar, a senior commander in the Justice and Equality movement and
half-brother of the group's leader, Khalil Ibrahim.

Ushar was arrested days after the daring May 10 attack by JEM on the
outskirts of Khartoum, where more than 200 people were killed.

It was the closest Darfur rebels have ever come to the capital, hundreds
of miles from their base in the far west of the country.

The conflict in Darfur erupted in 2003 when ethnic Africans in western
Sudan took up arms against the central government in Khartoum, accusing
it of marginalization and monopolizing resources. As many as 300,000
people have been killed and 2.5 million displaced since the violence
began. Until the attack on the capital, the conflict was mostly confined
to Darfur.

Al-Jazouli said he has a week to appeal the verdict. He said he also has
challenged the constitutionality of the anti-terrorist courts. The
special courts were set up in June, following the attack, and have since
sentenced 38 people to death.

The dozen charges against the defendants included waging war against the
state and the illicit use of weapons. Another 20 await a verdict on
Wednesday in the same case. Hundreds of Darfurians were arrested after
the attack, and it remains unclear how many remain behind bars.

Suleiman Sandal, a senior JEM commander in Darfur, vowed revenge if the
death sentences against Ushar and others were carried out.

"We swore if they go ahead with the execution, we will exact vengeance
from anyone who performs it," Sandal said in a satellite phone
interview.