Africa

Egypt and Ethiopia are at loggerheads over the mega dam, with Sudan literally stuck in the middle.

Athletes of African heritage based in the United States, are hoping to inspire their fans to vote in the US elections.

On Friday, the eve of the presidential election in Côte d'Ivoire, UN Secretary-General António Guterres called for all Ivorians to ensure that the polls are “conducted in a peaceful manner”.  

Chief Inspector Doreen Malambo, Gender Adviser at the United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS), has won 2020 UN Woman Police Officer of the Year Award, in honour of her work supporting vulnerable groups, such as women, girls, children, and people with disabilities.

In Kenya, a major UN-led cash and nutrition relief project is underway for informal workers facing a hunger crisis brought on by COVID-19, amidst warnings on Friday that the situation is likely even worse in many poorer countries. 

In the deadliest shipwreck recorded so far this year, at least 140 people have drowned after a vessel carrying around 200 migrants sank off the Senegalese coast, the UN migration agency confirmed on Thursday.

October 27, 2020 (KHARTOUM)- The Sudanese government officially announced the new liberalized fuel prices, with an increase of more than 400% over the previous price.

In a press conference held in Khartoum, the Minister of Energy and Mining Khairy Abdel-Rahman Khairy stated the liberalized fuel price will be effective as of Tuesday evening.

He added that a litre of gasoline will be sold at 120 pounds instead of 28 pounds previously, while the price of a litre of diesel will be 106 from 23 pounds.

Sudanese government decide to cancel fuel subsidy as part of an unpopular economic reform rejected by the leftist groups but endorsed by a national economic conference held in Khartoum recently.

The Sudanese Communist Party held a press conference to denounce the removal of fuel subsidy and vowed to organise popular protests against this reform.

Salih Mahmoud, a member of the SCP leading political bureau said they cannot remain silent while the country is heading straight for the abyss.

He added they will exert peaceful pressure on the government to respond to the popular demands and pedal back from these economic reforms.

"If (the government) refuses to back down from its policies through memoranda and peaceful demonstrations, the people of Sudan must come out and continue in the same approach to change this government".

The government released a clip to explain the purpose of the removal of subsidy and its immediate and future benefits for the economy.

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October 27, 2020 (KHARTOUM) - Sudan and South Sudan agreed to open the 10 border crossing points along the 2,000-kilometre (1,200-mile) boundary, said the Sudanese defence minister on Tuesday.

Following the independence of South Sudan in 2011, the two countries closed border and accused each other of supporting rebel groups from both sides affecting traders and communities on both sides.

However, during recent years, the two Sudans felt the need to work together to bring peace and stability on the two sides and create a conducive environment for joint cooperation.

On Monday, South Sudanese Defence Minister Angelina Teny arrived in Khartoum to participate in the meeting of the Joint Political and Security Mechanism with her Sudanese counterpart Yassin Ibrahim to discuss the implementation of the 2012 cooperation agreement including border control and security issues.

On Tuesday, they flew together to Kosti of the White Nile State for laying the foundation stone of a free trade zone.

Speaking at the event, Ibrahim announced the mechanism's decision to open the 10 border crossing points agreed in the cooperation agreement and the resumption of river navigation between the two countries.

He stressed that these developments imply to set up a long-term joint strategy to serve the peoples of the two countries.

Landlocked South Sudan, only implemented the oil transit deal among the other protocols of the cooperation agreement.

Minister Teny, for her part, underscored that laying the foundation stone for free trade zones and resuming river and road transport is a big step in the implementation of the cooperation agreement between the two countries.

She further said that arrangements are underway to start joint cooperation through the dry port in Kosti through training, clearance programs and all customs procedures.

The dray port is a terminal directly connected by road to the Kosti river port, operating as a centre for the transhipment of river cargo to inland destinations.

Sudanese finance and trade ministers also spoke about their plans to develop border trade and economic cooperation between the countries.

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October 27, 2020 (KHARTOUM) - Sudanese and Egyptian heads of state reiterated the need for a legally-binding agreement on the filling of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) on Tuesday as a tripartite committee met on the same day to prepare the resumption of talks.

Last July, Ethiopia brushed aside the negotiations under the Khartoum Declaration of Principles of 2015. Instead, Addis Ababa proposed to negotiate a guidelines-and-rules agreement on the first filling of the dam that could be unilaterally modified and even repealed in certain cases.

The head of the Sudanese Sovereign Council, Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, was in Cairo on Tuesday to discuss with President Abel Fattah al-Sisi, the stalled crisis of the giant dam.

In a statement released at the end of the one-day visit, the spokesman of the Egyptian presidency stated that both al-Burhan and President al-Sisi reiterated their commitment to the initial 2015 declaration and called for a legally-binding agreement on the filling and operation of the dam.

Bassam Radi went on to say that the two leaders agreed on the water issue's significance to the Egyptian and Sudanese peoples, as it is also "an issue of national security".

"So, the two countries adhered to reaching a binding legal agreement," he stressed.

It is worth mentioning that Sudan had called for a greater role for the African Union, the EU, and the U.S., suggesting that they become mediators rather than mere observers or facilitators.

However, Ethiopia is now accusing the U.S. of being biased particularly after the recent statement by President Trump that “They (Egypt) will end up blowing up the dam” due to the Ethiopian intransigence in the ongoing talks.

Ethiopian officials, including Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, and Former Prime Minister Hailemariam Dessalegn, have firmly condemned and rejected Trump's “threat,” which they believe to be a declaration of his pro-Egypt position.

On Tuesday, the irrigation ministers of the three countries took part in a videoconference meeting convened by the South African foreign minister with the presence of the US and EU as observers.

After Tuesday the meeting, Sudanese Minister of Irrigation, Yasir Abbas, issued a statement in Khartoum reiterating his country's insistence on continuing negotiations with the same previous approach.

"Sudan submitted a proposal to give a greater role to experts and observers in the negotiation process to narrow the gaps in the positions of the three parties," said Abbas in a statement to the official news agency SUNA.

The meeting agreed that Sudan calls for a follow-up meeting within a week to submit a report to the AU chairman on ways to achieve substantial progress in the stalled negotiations.

The Minister concluded that the parties agreed to set a clear and detailed agenda, a strict timetable for the negotiation, and a clear list of the goals that must be reached with the help of observers and experts — a manner different from the previous rounds.

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The UN Secretary-General has called on everyone involve inTanzania's political process to ensure that Wednesday’s general elections are held in a safe, inclusive and peaceful manner, amid reports of intimidation and harassment of political opponents, journalists and activists. 

October 26, 2020 (CAIRO) – The Egyptian Prime Minister, Mostafa Madbouly on Monday met South Sudan's Irrigation and Water Resources minister, Manawa Peter Gatkuoth to discuss water issues.

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi (R) shaking hands with South Sudan's President Salva Kiir at the presidential palace in the Egyptian capital, Cairo, January 10, 2017. (Photo: AFP)

Speaking during the meeting held in the Egyptian capital, Cairo, Madbouly said Egypt would support South Sudan in various fields, with particular focus on South Sudanese students currently in Egypt.

The Egyptian Prime Minister further said his country is ready to set up investment projects in South Sudan, focusing on its priority areas.

He also directed the Egyptian Ministry of Foreign Affairs to speed up the formation of a Joint Higher Committee between Cairo and Juba, with its first meeting to be held in Cairo before the end of this year.

For his part, Gatkuoth thanked Madbouly for the North African nation's support for South Sudan during recent floods in the country.

He said Juba is ready to benefit from Egypt's experience in building South Sudan's capacity of South Sudan as well as Egyptian investments in agriculture, irrigation, electricity and other projects.

The minister lauded Egypt's support for South Sudan in the field of education, citing the establishment of industrial schools in South Sudan and its government's decision to increase the number of scholarships for South Sudanese students studying at Egyptian universities.

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October 26, 2020 (JUBA) - The Chinese government has donated 1,500 tons of rice in support of the peace process in South Sudan.

The unified force of instructors pose for a group photo in Juba, October 5, 2019 (Xinhua)

The donation, which was given to the National Transitional Committee (NTC), will be used to feed thousands of soldiers assembled in the various cantonment sites across the country.

While receiving the donation from the Chinese government on Monday, Stephen Pal, South Sudan's Minister of Peace Building said the items would speed up the unification of the joint military force.

"On behalf of the government and the people of South Sudan, I would like to express my profound pleasure to the people and the government of China for the assistance towards the peace process," he said.

For his part, however, Hua Ning, the Chinese Ambassador to South Sudan, said Beijing has supported South Sudan's peace process with 2,500 tents, 50,000 blankets and 3,000 tons of rice since last year.

"As friends and partners of the South Sudanese government and people, we wish for a smooth implementation of the peace process, especially the reunification of the army," he said.

The ambassador pledged China's continued support to South Sudan's peace process.

"Our support will not end here, we are still in discussion with the ministry of defense and related institutions to see the possibility of further support for the cantonment of the army," he stressed.

The process of gathering government and opposition forces into training sites with a view to forming a unified army is a cornerstone of the 2018 peace agreement.

At least 83,000 unified forces are expected to form the national army

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October 26, 2020 (KHARTOUM) - U.S. President Donald Trump Monday formally notified the Congress of his decision to remove Sudan from the list of State Sponsors of Terrorism.

"Pursuant to the Constitution and the laws of the United States,(...) I hereby certify, with respect to the rescission of the determination of August 12, 1993, regarding Sudan that:"

"(i) the Government of Sudan has not provided any support for acts of international terrorism during the preceding 6-month period; and"

"(ii) the Government of Sudan has provided assurances that it will not support acts of international terrorism in the future".

The Congress now has 45 days to pass a resolution rejecting Sudan's delisting, otherwise, it will become definitive by the end of this delay in December 2020.

The lawmakers also must pass legislation restoring Sudan's sovereign immunities, to protect Sudan against new lawsuits for terror attacks.

Some Democrat senators vowed to oppose legislation restoring Sudan's immunity before U.S. courts but it is not clear if they can influence the deal s there is a large support to the delisting in the Congress.

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October 26, 2020 (KHARTOUM) - The head of the Sovereignty Council, Abdel-Fattah al-Burhan, said that the leader of the National Umma Party (NUP) Sadiq al-Mahdi pledged to support the normalization with Israel if the Legislative Council approved it.

However, al Burhan did not specify if the NUP leader spoke about the appointed legislative council during the transitional period or the elected council at the end of this period.

Previously, al-Mahdi told the BBC Arabic Service he would oppose the transitional government and seek to topple Hamdok's cabinet in the event of normalization with Sudan.

Speaking in an interview with the Sudan TV channel to explain the deal struck with Israel, al-Burhan said he consulted with all political forces and found that 90 per cent of them do not oppose this step because it is in the interest of the Sudanese people and the country.

"I consulted with Imam al-Sadiq Al-Mahdi, and he said that if this matter is presented to the Legislative Council and approved by it, then there is no difference (with the government over it)," he said.

Al-Burhan stressed the right of all parties to freedom of expression, as long as everyone agrees that the agreement becomes binding if endorsed by the Legislative Council.

He also stressed that "the elected parliament" has the right to reconsider the normalization agreement or other issues.

The Chairman of the Sovereign Council met with the Israeli Prime Minister in Uganda on February 3, 2020, to discuss the normalization of relations between the two countries in exchange for supporting Sudan end its international isolation and removing Sudan from the list of state sponsors of terrorism.

Al-Mahdi reacts

Immediately after the end of the TV interview, al-Mahdi issued a statement saying that he met Al-Burhan on October 25, after the announcement of the agreement to normalize relations with Israel.

He said he renewed his party's support for the transitional government.

"This support will continue on condition that the government announces that normalization is decided by an elected parliament (...)," further emphasized the short statement.

Al-Mahdi's requirement that the normalization is endorsed by an elected parliament means that the transitional government is ineligible for normalization with Israel.

It is worth mentioning that Islamist parties refused the establishment of diplomatic relations with Israel, as well as Arab nationalist parties.

The Sudanese Communist Party voiced its opposition to the normalization with Israel but reiterated their support to the transitional government.

Also, the Democratic Unionist Party of Mohamed Osman al-Mirghani supported the rapprochement with Israel.

Al-Burhan for his part seemed confident about the popular support to the deal with Israel. He challenged any political party to go to the elections with slogans hostile to the normalization process.

He also disclosed he and the Sudanese Prime Minister discussed the timing of normalization and the possibility of waiting for the end of the US elections.

He said that after consultations that included the negotiating delegation, they found it was better for them to accomplish the removal from the terror list during the term of President Trump.

"The (economic) situation in Sudan does not allow waiting for another period that may last until next September," he said.

On Sunday, the Sudanese Foreign Ministry announced that talks would be held in Khartoum with an Israeli delegation to draft the normalization agreement.

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October 26, 2020 (KHARTOUM) - Sudan's head of the Sovereign Council Abdel Fattah al-Burhan dismissed that any foreign country had paid compensations for victims of terrorism.

Press reports said that Saudi Arabia encouraged Sudan to normalize with Israel and paid compensations to the victims of terrorism, as part of its efforts to increase Donald Trump's chances in the presidential elections.

"The amount of compensation for the families of the victims in the bombings was paid from our own resources, and no country paid it on our behalf," he stressed.

Khartoum had encountered severe difficulties to collect compensations to collect the compensations of terror victims. Officials said that the government bought dollars from the black market and this contributed to the depreciation of the Sudanese pound and the rise in inflation.

Last year, Saudi Arabia and the UAE pledged to pay each 1.5 billion to help Sudan. But in fact, they only gave one billion.

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Africa needs to prepare better for climate change by responding to a wide range of potential risks, a multi-agency report led by the UN World Meteorological Organization (WMO) said on Monday, the first in a series of continent-by-continent assessments.

The UN Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL) has announced the launch of the Libyan Political Dialogue Forum, following the signing of a permanent ceasefire agreement in the strife-torn country. 

October 25, 2020 (KHARTOUM) - The Sudanese Communist Party (SCP) said its disagreement with the government policies does not affect its commitment to the cohesion of the alliance backing Hamdok cabinet.

Recently, the Sudanese communists criticized the Juba peace agreement and rejected the normalization with Israel.

However, the SCP official spokesperson, Amal Hussein al-Zain told the official news agency SUNA on Sunday that her the leftist party is keen to preserve the cohesion of the Forces for Freedom and Change (FFC) alliance.

"The difference between the party and some allies made some bets that the PCS is working to dismantle the forces of the Declaration of Freedom and Change," al-Zain said.

“The SCP stands and supports any rightful stance or action by the government for the benefit of the broad spectrum of the masses,” she said.

“In return, the party rejected any mistake or any action by the government against the will of the people and the goals of its revolution,” the spokesperson stressed.

The FFC are set to take part in a meeting on the normalization with Israel on Monday afternoon together with the cabinet, the Sovereign Council and the Sudanese Revolutionary Front which will take part in such a meeting for the first time after the signing of the peace agreement.

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October 25, 2020 (NEW YORK) - Sudan is currently embarking on an attempt to mediate between General Thomas Cirillo of the National Salvation Front (NAS) and the Government of South Sudan, a senior United Nations official told the Security Council Thursday last week.

Exiled South Sudanese rebel general Thomas Cirillo poses for a photograph inside his hotel room in Addis Ababa, on April 17, 2017 (Reuters photo)

Parfait Onanga-Anyanga, the UN Special Envoy to the Horn of Africa revealed that involvement of the Sudanese government comes in the wake of the ongoing Rome talks mediated by the Sant'Egidio community.

“Authorities in both countries are confident that all outstanding bilateral issues between their countries, including Abyei and resolution of the situation in South Kordofan and the Blue Nile states, will benefit from the friendly relationships and the mutual trust they are now enjoying,” he said.

The UN official commended the strengthening relations between Sudan and neighbouring South Sudan, saying it offers an opportunity for the international community to engage in the two countries.

NAS, however, said reports on Sudan's involvement were not true.

“This statement is not true. NAS is categorically not in contact with Sudan on any mediation. This information is diversionary as well as its purpose. We only know of SSOMA negotiation in Rome under Sant'Egidio. It will be helpful if you can provide us with official statement on this particular matter,” Suba Samuel Manase, the spokesperson for the hold-out group told Sudan Tribune on Friday.

NAS together with its allies in the opposition alliance participated in the third round of talks of the Rome Peace Process between South Sudan Opposition Movement (SSOMA) and the Revitalized Government of National Unity in South Sudan (R-TGoNU), under the auspices of the Sant'Egidio community in Rome from October 9-12.

The third round of the peace process was a continuation of the first and second rounds of talks mediated by the Sant'Egidio community.

Founded in 1968, the Community of Sant'Egidio is a lay Catholic association dedicated to social service provision.

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October 25, 2020 (KHARTOUM) - The Sudanese government has begun implementing a national plan to protect civilians in the Darfur region, ahead of the withdrawal of the hybrid operation UNAMID by the end of the year, the foreign ministry said on Sunday.

The tripartite mechanism on the UNAMID held a meeting at the headquarters of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, with the participation Jean-Pierre Lacroix, U.N. Under-Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations, Smail Chergui, AU Peace and Security Commissioner.

The meeting intervenes at the end of the meetings of the tripartite technical committee in Khartoum. Also, The two AU and UN officials have to brief a meeting of the UN Security Council on the UNMAID withdrawal by the end of October.

The Sudanese government has repeated its refusal to maintain UNAMID while a new mission prepares to be deployed to support the political transition in Sudan including the implementation of peace agreements.

Also, the transitional government prepared a national plan to protect civilians in the Darfur region when the hybrid peacekeeping forces leave the region.

In a statement released after the end of the meeting, the Sudanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs said that the government had begun implementing the national plan to protect civilians, practically on the ground, by forming and deploying joint forces to establish security.

"The national plan has been prepared in a comprehensive manner covering all the security aspects," stressed the ministry.

According to the statement, the Undersecretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Mohamed Sharif Abdallah, told the meeting that Sudan is capable of filling the void left by the UNAMID exit.

He further reiterated the position of his country's to end the mandate of UNAMID to make room for the new United Nations Integrated Transition Assistance Mission in Sudan (UNITAMS) and indicated Sudan's willingness to provide needed facilities for the departure of the hybrid mission.

Last June, the UN Security Council extended the UNAMID mandate until the end of 2020 and requested to create coordination with the UNITMAS to determine the modalities and timelines for the handover of responsibilities in Darfur.

In line with the peace agreement of 3 October, a 12,000-strong force including the Sudanese army and the signatory Darfur armed groups will be deployed in the western Sudan region to protect the civilians for 39 months.

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