Three churches torched twice in Sudan’s Blue Nile state

20/01/2020 10:57 KAMPALA / BOUT

Three churches in Bout, Blue Nile state, were set on fire twice in the past four weeks, the Kampala-based Sudanese Human Rights and Democracy Organisation (HUDO) reported in an Urgent Appeal today.
On the evening of December 28, 2019, unknown persons simultaneously set fire to church buildings belonging to the Sudan Internal Church, the Catholic Church, and the Orthodox Church in the town.

A demolished church building in Khartoum (Radio Tamazuj)

Three churches in Bout, Blue Nile state, were set on fire twice in the past four weeks, the Kampala-based Sudanese Human Rights and Democracy Organisation (HUDO) reported in an Urgent Appeal today.

On the evening of December 28 last year, unknown persons simultaneously torched church buildings belonging to "the Sudan Internal Church, the Catholic Church, and the Orthodox Church" in the town.

The incidents were reported to the police in Bout, who did not move to investigate the case or put preventive measures, HUDO says.

Church members managed to rebuild the three churches with local materials. Yet, in the evening of January 16, the churches were torched again.  

Again, the case was reported to the police, and again, no further steps were taken.

HUDO expresses its concerns about the violations of “the rights of the worshipers” and calls upon the Sudanese government “to take urgent action to safeguard the constitutional rights of the affected citizens”.

The Ministry of Interior Affairs should immediately take action and hold the police in Bout accountable for not taking the necessary measures to prevent the fires.

Bout, a small town on the Sudan-South Sudan border, is the capital of Tadamon locality in Blue Nile state.

 

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