South Sudanese attending a meeting with the Ambassador in Cairo in June, 19, 2019 | Credit | Dengdit Madut

An activist has called on South Sudan and Egypt to move beyond condemnations and take action over the racial attacks and alleged killing of South Sudanese in Egypt.

Over the weekend, three South Sudanese teenagers were yet again victims of a suspected racial attack.

Akok Kuol, 14, was reportedly beaten with his two cousins by a group of unruly Egyptian boys in Ein Shams residential area.

The children said they were on their way to attend a birthday party at an aunt’s house when they were stopped and forced into an apartment where they were humiliated by Egyptian knife-boys.

Akok told the media that one of his cousin-sister was told to remove her clothes so that they could see her chest, while the boys beat him up.

The Egyptian police later arrested the attackers.

In a statement, the Egyptian Embassy in Juba condemns the incident, saying it rejects such unjust acts and promising the aggressors will be held accountable.

However, the executive director of the Community Empowerment for Progress Organization says rebuttals alone is not enough.

Edmund Yakani states that it is about time both governments in Juba and Cairo addressed the matter conclusively.

He reminds the Egyptian government of international obligation that stipulates that every South Sudanese enjoys the rights to safety, protection and security there.

For his part, South Sudan’s deputy minister of foreign affairs and international cooperation, Deng Dau, told Eye Radio that they were looking into the matter.

“It is a very disturbing situation. We are still talking with our ambassador in Egypt to enable us take an informed decision and give our position,” Dau added.

This is not the first such incident to happen in Egypt.

In 2020, another teenager, Manut Chol, was bullied by two Egyptian boys. The incident was caught on camera.

Such incidents have often sparked public outrage, with social media users calling on the Egyptian government to convict the attackers for mockery and racism.