Kassala: The Official Spokesman’s Platform
The competent authorities in Kassala State, represented by the Child Welfare Council, have begun handing over children of prisoners of war to their families who were captured as fighters with the rebel Rapid Support Forces, they were then handed over by the Armed Forces to the Red Cross and deported them to Kassala State, they numbered (30) minor children.
The Designated Governor of Kassala, Mr. Khojali Hamad Abdalla, when he observed the process of handing over the (4) children to their families as a first batch, appreciated the efforts of all those who contributed to providing services to the children, including psychological support, social and health care, and their achievement of good health.
He explained that the services provided to the children were carried out on the basis that they are Sudanese citizens who have all the rights enjoyed by every Sudanese citizen.
He said that we are against the recruitment of children as fighters, and we respect the law and human rights, and that all people are equal and there is no discrimination between them on any basis.
He added that when we were consulted about hosting children under the legal age, we welcomed the idea, and that the children were in a deplorable condition, and everything necessary had been done regarding them, and it was time for them to return to the arms of their families.
He noted that the state will hand over any child to his family, provided that their procedures are completed and the degree of kinship is confirmed and that they are in safe hands, noting that there is a letter addressed by the state to the Presidency of the Sovereign Council related to issuing a general amnesty to the children so that they are not pursued or held accountable by any party and that they are no longer soldiers in Rapid Support Forces.
The Governor appealed to the rest of the families to contact the competent authorities in the state, noting that children whose families have not yet been reached will receive care and all respect until they are handed over to their families.
For his part, Secretary of the Child Welfare Council in Kassala State, Mr. Omar Osman, explained that the children were provided with services related to psychological, social and health support during their stay in the state after receiving them from the Red Cross, and that the process of handing them over to their families takes place according to the directives of the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces.
He expressed his thanks to all parties that contributed to providing everything needed for the children and bringing them to the stage of handing them over to their families.
A number of mothers of children expressed their thanks and appreciation to the State Government and other parties for their care and full care of their children.
