US official killed in Sudan shooting

[HURAKAN]

US official killed in Sudan shooting
7 hours ago

KHARTOUM (AFP) — A US official and his driver were killed in a pre-dawn shooting in the Sudanese capital Khartoum on Tuesday but the authorities insisted it was not a terrorist attack.

"Early this morning, January 1, 2008, in Khartoum, Sudan, an American officer with the United States Agency for International Development was shot and wounded," the US embassy said in a statement.

"A locally employed Sudanese national was killed in the same incident. This afternoon, the American officer succumbed to his injuries and passed away. We are working closely with local authorities to investigate the incident."

It was not immediately clear if it was a targeted attack against the official, identified by USAID as 33-year-old John Granville, or a random criminal shooting.

Sudan's foreign ministry however insisted the attack was "an isolated incident which has no political connotations."

The interior ministry said the diplomatic car had been caught in a fight which broke out as some Sudanese nationals were on the street celebrating the New Year.

An anonymous official quoted by the Sudanese Media Centre, which is close to the intelligence services, said there was "no evidence of an organised terrorist act."

Relations between Sudan and the United States have long been strained, most recently over the near five-year conflict in the western region of Darfur where Washington has accused Khartoum of genocide.

In September, the US embassy issued a travel warning alerting its citizens that the government had received indications of terrorist threats aimed at American and Western interests in Sudan.

Sudan's interior ministry said the embassy vehicle was fired on by unidentified gunmen in another car at 3:57 am (0057 GMT) as it drove through the residential area of Ryad in western Khartoum.

The Sudanese driver, identified as Abdel Rahman Abbas, 40, was killed instantly in a hail of gunfire, it said.

"The occupants of the vehicle opened fire on the side of the driver who was killed instantly while the other passenger was shot five times in the hand, right shoulder and stomach," it said.

USAID said on his website that Granville was working on a programme to bring radios to the population of south Sudan, according to the USAID website.

The interior ministry said it was launching in investigation to find the culprits and the motivation behind the shooting.

It occurred just a day after US President George W. Bush signed a law aimed at piling economic pressure on the government in Khartoum.

It also came a day after a new joint African Union-United Nations force took over peacekeeping in Dafur from an AU mission which failed to stem nearly five years of conflict.

The United States accuses Sudan of committing genocide in Darfur where at least 200,000 people have been killed as a result of the conflict, according to UN figures.

"My administration will continue its efforts to bring about significant improvements in the conditions in Sudan through sanctions against the government of Sudan and high-level diplomatic engagement and by supporting the deployment of peacekeepers in Darfur," Bush said in a statement.

More than two million people have also fled their homes since the ethnic minority rebels took up arms against Sudan's Arab-dominated regime in February 2003.

The government's response was to back the Arab Janjaweed militia and give it free rein to crack down on the rebels and their suspected civilian supporters.

The United States is the leading international donor to Sudan and has contributed nearly 2.9 billion dollars for humanitarian programmes in Sudan and eastern Chad since 2004.

In 1998, the United States launched cruise missile strikes against Khartoum following the bombings of US embassies in east Africa, attacks blamed on Al-Qaeda.

[wyq614]

Sometimes the US care too much about the internal affairs of other countries...

[Dionne]

Sometimes the US care too much about the internal affairs of other countries...

BS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! The guy was a relief worker giving away radios.

[Chacor]

USAID employees cannot possibly be called 'relief workers'. Seriously. They're employees of the American government, and have similar status to diplomats in many countries - including Sudan.

[Dionne]

Okay.....USAID is the primary US agency providing economic and humanitarian assistance to countries recovering from disaster.

Sorry about the "relief worker" words use.

[wyq614]

What had US done in Sudan?
- Air raids
- Destruct the only, as well as the most advanced Sudanese big pharmaceutical factory that was considered a "military building".
- Destruct the local values and replace it with western ones
- And more?

Never give away radios, instead, tell them how to survive and avoid starving to death. A man who suffers from hunger is not interested in radios.

[Chacor]

What had US done in Sudan?
- Air raids
- Destruct the only, as well as the most advanced Sudanese big pharmaceutical factory that was considered a "military building".
- Destruct the local values and replace it with western ones
- And more?

Never give away radios, instead, tell them how to survive and avoid starving to death. A man who suffers from hunger is not interested in radios.

I'd like to see some proof of what you allege has taken place, please.

[wyq614]

What had US done in Sudan?
- Air raids
- Destruct the only, as well as the most advanced Sudanese big pharmaceutical factory that was considered a "military building".
- Destruct the local values and replace it with western ones
- And more?

Never give away radios, instead, tell them how to survive and avoid starving to death. A man who suffers from hunger is not interested in radios.

I'd like to see some proof of what you allege has taken place, please.

I've read a book called Rogue State written by William Blum (if my memory doesn't fail), please check the part mentioning Sudan issue.

[wyq614]

This is also helpful

http://www.converge.org.nz/pma/asudan.htm

[lurkey]

What had US done in Sudan?
- Air raids
- Destruct the only, as well as the most advanced Sudanese big pharmaceutical factory that was considered a "military building".
- Destruct the local values and replace it with western ones
- And more?

Never give away radios, instead, tell them how to survive and avoid starving to death. A man who suffers from hunger is not interested in radios.

Ok, if corrupt gov't officials in Sudan and other African countries stop stealing the food aid, maybe people wouldn't be starving. And if it hasn't escaped your notice, there is a civil war going on between the Muslim north and Christian South. . . Something the US had nothing to with (believe it or not). Women being raped, children being enslaved (slavery is alive and well in the Muslim north) and people being deliberately starved to death . . .

As for the US caring too much about the welfare about other nations . . . it's damn if we do and damn if we don't. .. and frankly I rather be damned for caring. . .

[wyq614]

What had US done in Sudan?
- Air raids
- Destruct the only, as well as the most advanced Sudanese big pharmaceutical factory that was considered a "military building".
- Destruct the local values and replace it with western ones
- And more?

Never give away radios, instead, tell them how to survive and avoid starving to death. A man who suffers from hunger is not interested in radios.

Ok, if corrupt gov't officials in Sudan and other African countries stop stealing the food aid, maybe people wouldn't be starving. And if it hasn't escaped your notice, there is a civil war going on between the Muslim north and Christian South. . . Something the US had nothing to with (believe it or not). Women being raped, children being enslaved (slavery is alive and well in the Muslim north) and people being deliberately starved to death . . .

As for the US caring too much about the welfare about other nations . . . it's damn if we do and damn if we don't. .. and frankly I rather be damned for caring. . .

Are African officials really that corrupted? I learned that Mobutu was a corrupted one...
China also aids Africa much, so our money and food haven't arrived at people's homes?

[lurkey]

What had US done in Sudan?
- Air raids
- Destruct the only, as well as the most advanced Sudanese big pharmaceutical factory that was considered a "military building".
- Destruct the local values and replace it with western ones
- And more?

Never give away radios, instead, tell them how to survive and avoid starving to death. A man who suffers from hunger is not interested in radios.

Ok, if corrupt gov't officials in Sudan and other African countries stop stealing the food aid, maybe people wouldn't be starving. And if it hasn't escaped your notice, there is a civil war going on between the Muslim north and Christian South. . . Something the US had nothing to with (believe it or not). Women being raped, children being enslaved (slavery is alive and well in the Muslim north) and people being deliberately starved to death . . .

As for the US caring too much about the welfare about other nations . . . it's damn if we do and damn if we don't. .. and frankly I rather be damned for caring. . .

Are African officials really that corrupted? I learned that Mobutu was a corrupted one...
China also aids Africa much, so our money and food haven't arrived at people's homes?

In Ethiopia and Somalia, the warlords control food distribution. There was a lot of controversy about Live Aid money being diverted to some of the warlords in Ethiopia. Corruption prevelant in most countries of the world. It just worse in Africa due to the lack of government control, judicial reform and tribal warfare. The governments, like most governments, also want their cut of the pie.

ETA: Corruption and bribery are sometimes a way of life, sorta of the "local" versus "Western" values debate. What wouldn't be tolerated in the US is a common everyday thing somewhere else. Many American companies have been convicted for bribery and corruption infractions in the US, because of what is expected to do business in other countries.

I think most money does reach the starving in Africa. I prefer to give to organizations that are actively trying to help the African people help themselves. There is a saying If you give a man a fish, you feed him for a day, if you teach a man to fish, you will feed him for a lifetime. (or something to that effect).

I am not saying the US (or American private charities -- because the private and parohical sector do a lot more than the US gov't) are perfect, and some cases we've done more harm than good. But I think bringing in radios (access to the outside world), OLPC programs (again connecting them to rest of the world) and teaching them the old skills of agriculture, herding, and fishing (with a modern, enviromental-friendly twist)that were lost (because of colonialism and Western ways that don't work in the deserts and savannas of Africa) is good.

[wyq614]

If you give a man a fish, you feed him for a day, if you teach a man to fish, you will feed him for a lifetime.

授之以鱼，不如授之以渔。

A perfect view indeed!!

[Dionne]

This is also helpful

http://www.converge.org.nz/pma/asudan.htm

Yeah, that there is real helpful. Almost 10 years old and associated with Bin Laden. Mohammed Ali Ahmed (mentioned in your link) is suspected of US Embassy bombings.

[Cryomaniac]

What had US done in Sudan?
- Air raids
- Destruct the only, as well as the most advanced Sudanese big pharmaceutical factory that was considered a "military building".
- Destruct the local values and replace it with western ones
- And more?

Never give away radios, instead, tell them how to survive and avoid starving to death. A man who suffers from hunger is not interested in radios.

I'd like to see some proof of what you allege has taken place, please.

Air raids have happened, not sure about the others.