SA soldiers held 'hostage' in Sudan as guarantee for Al-Bashir’s safe return

“Only after Al-Bashir safely touched down in Khartoum on Monday, were Sudanese troops withdrawn".

 Photo credit: Times Live/Mohamaed Nureldin Abdallah/Reuters

According to a report, about 1,400 South African soldiers were held "hostage" by Sudanese troops in Darfur While the confusion around President Omar Al-Bashir’s possible arrest in Johannesburg escalated. Perhaps this could be one of the reasons President Zuma allowed the Sudanese leader go? More on the story after the cut...

The South African National Defence Union's Pikkie Greeff on Tuesday told EWN that this had been confirmed by several sources, some of them soldiers. “The Sudanese army only withdrew from their position once al-Bashir left South Africa. This would boil down to blackmail by threatening someone with war.” Greef said he has no reason to doubt the reports because they come from the soldiers. “We are concerned about the safety of our soldiers because they are there as peacekeepers and not there for conventional war. Zuma must take a firm stand on this issue,” he added. According to News 24, the Sudanese government of president Omar al-Bashir literally held a gun to South Africa’s head to secure his safe return to Khartoum. According to the website, this effectively means Sudan blackmailed South Africa and the soldiers’. “Only after Al-Bashir safely touched down in Khartoum on Monday, were Sudanese troops withdrawn. One South African soldier said on Tuesday from Sudan that: “We were so scared – we were surrounded by soldiers.” Another soldier added: “Vehicles approached our bases and the commander placed us on State 2 of readiness. This meant all troops had to be in combat gear, fully armed, and positioned in bunkers and against embankments.” President Jacob Zuma is the commander-in-chief of the defence force. Bashir departed for Sudan on Monday, despite a high court order preventing him from leaving South Africa. His departure sent mixed reactions across the country, with opposition parties accusing the government of violating a court order. Source: Times Live/News 24