Photo : Olamikan Gbemiga, AP Photo
NIAS Area Studies
AFRICA MONITOR
Photo : Olamikan Gbemiga, AP Photo
IN BRIEF
by Anu Maria Joseph
Nigeria: Eight school girls escapes from kidnappers
On 19 April, BBC reported that eight Nigerian schoolgirls who were abducted by gunmen previously in April, escaped from their abductors. The students were seized by an armed group while they were going home after school in Awon in the area of Kachia. Kaduna state security commissioner Samuel Aruwan said that the students escaped through the forest along the Niger border. (“Eight Nigerian schoolgirls escape from kidnappers,” BBC, 19 April 2023)
Chad: 320 Sudanese soldiers detained while fleeing from the violence
On 19 April, Kenyan President Willian Ruto said that he was deeply alarmed by the “misunderstanding” between the rival military factions in Sudan that caused the violence. He urged both sides to agree for an emergency ceasefire and to allow “unrestricted humanitarian access” to the affected. He added: "There is real danger that the escalation of hostilities in Sudan could implicate external, regional and international actors and degenerate into a security and humanitarian crisis on a disastrous scale." Meanwhile, the same day,, BBC reported that nearly 320 Sudanese troops were detained in Chad while trying to cross the Chad border through Darfur region. The AFP news agency quoted Chad’s defence minister saying: "They arrived in our territory, were disarmed and detained.” He added that they fled Sudan fearing being killed by the Rapid Support Forces (RSF). (“Chad detains 320 fleeing Sudanese troops Kenyan leader urges Sudan rivals to ceasefire,” BBC, 19 April 2023)
Sudan: Russia’s Wargner group denies involvement in the violence
On 19 April, the head of the Russian mercenary Wagner Group, Yevgeny Prigozhin, denied involvement in the Sudan crisis and added that the company doesn't have any presence in Sudan for more than two years. He said: “I can tell you with absolute certainty, with absolute accuracy, and you can enter my words in any protocols for any institution in the highest levels: as of today, there is not a single private military company (PMC) Wagner fighter, I stress - not a single one - in Sudan. And it has been this way for over two years.” He was responding to a journalist who asked regarding the groups' support to the Rapid Support Forces (RSF). (“Russia’s Wagner denies involvement in Sudan crisis,” BBC, 19 April 2023)