Sudan: Illegal arms collection drive to include Red Sea

By Abdullah Uluyurt

KHARTOUM, Sudan

An ongoing illegal arms collection drive in the country will include the northern Red Sea state, according to a regional governor Tuesday.

Red Sea state Governor Ali Ahmad Hamid said the government had established a special committee in accordance with the provisional constitution of 2016 to confiscate illegal arms from Sudanese citizens.

Local officials will take part in the arms collection drive in the Red Sea tribal area where Sudan has a long running dispute with its northern neighbor Egypt, the governor said.

President Omar al-Bashir made the decision last year to collect unregistered weapons from citizens in order to end clashes between tribes and the government.

In August 2017, the government ordered citizens to handover all kinds of weapons to the nearest police department or military offices.

Military spokesman Brig. Gen. Ahmad Khalifa ash-Shami said over 15,000 guns and more than 500 off-road vehicles had been confiscated, so far, in the last two months.

By Abdullah Uluyurt

KHARTOUM, Sudan

An ongoing illegal arms collection drive in the country will include the northern Red Sea state, according to a regional governor Tuesday.

Local officials will take part in the arms collection drive in the Red Sea tribal area where Sudan has a long running dispute with its northern neighbor Egypt, the governor said.

President Omar al-Bashir made the decision last year to collect unregistered weapons from citizens in order to end clashes between tribes and the government.

In August 2017, the government ordered citizens to handover all kinds of weapons to the nearest police department or military offices.

Military spokesman Brig. Gen. Ahmad Khalifa ash-Shami said over 15,000 guns and more than 500 off-road vehicles had been confiscated, so far, in the last two months.