Africa

September 21, 2015 (KHARTOUM) - The European Union (EU) has pledged to provide basic food, shelter and drugs to the needy in the conflict areas in Darfur, South Kordofan and Blue Nile on the occasion of the Eid al-Adha (Feast of Sacrifice) next Thursday.

Ambassador Tomas Ulicny (Photo courtesy of the EU)

EU ambassador to Khartoum, Thomas Ulicny has sent a congratulatory message to the Sudanese people on the occasion of Hajj (pilgrimage) and Eid al-Adha, saying “I extend my greetings and congratulations to all those who are performing Hajj and celebrating Eid al-Adha”.

“Muslims celebration of Eid al-Adha is a commemoration of the willingness of Abraham, peace be upon him, to sacrifice his son and thus it is a good opportunity for providing food to those who are less fortunate,” he added.

He expressed hope that God accepts prayers on this occasion and brings lasting peace, reconciliation and forgiveness not only to Sudan but also to South Sudan, Syria, Iraq, Libya and Yemen.

The EU envoy further hoped that their efforts reach those who are in need “for our humanity before our care”.

Meanwhile, the deputy joint special representative for the hybrid peacekeeping in Darfur (UNAMID), Abiodun Oluremi Bashua, urged the Sudanese people in a message on the occasion of Eid al-Adha to draw lessons of peace and sacrifice from the story of Abraham and his son.

“The road to peace is fraught with obstacles, difficulties, tests and sacrifices and peace won't be achieved unless everybody shows sincere intentions and resolve,” he added
He described the progress which has been made in the internal dialogue in Darfur as a positive step towards achieving peace, stability and development in the region.

Bashua added they still hope that a comprehensive national dialogue will take place, pointing that recent meetings of the rebel umbrella Sudan Revolutionary Front (SRF) in Paris has given new breath for achieving peace in Darfur and throughout Sudan.

(ST)

By Tesfa-Alem Tekle

September 21, 2015 (ADDIS ABABA) –The Addis Ababa electrified light railway network officially commenced operation Sunday, head of Ethiopia Railways Corporation (ERC) said.

The secretive Red Sea nation, bordering Sudan and Ethiopia, has been dubbed the North Korea of Africa (HRW)

Getachew Betru said a 17-kilometers long portion of the railway stretching from the north to the south of the capital started producing services to tens of thousands of residents.

"A remaining 17-kilometer long route, stretching from East to west part of the capital will begin providing service next month," he told reporters in Addis Ababa Monday.

Trial operation, the official said, had been taking place since February this year, courtesy of a number of qualified personnel who had been receiving training overseas.

According to Getachew, the minimum tariff to a transport distance covering 4 kilometers is 2 birr ($0.096), while the cost for 17km covering a whole journey is 6 birr ($0.193).

Payment system of the railway service will reportedly involve both cash and electromagnetic card that has to be used when boarding and getting off.

Getachew said services would be provided to the public under huge government subsidy.

“If there are many loopholes, we are ready to identify and address in due course. We will make strong supervision in areas where movement of people is high”, he stressed.

The new rail transport network is expected to ease the huge public transport problems in one of the world's most populace city.

When contacted by Sudan Tribune, however, some Addis Ababa residents expressed delight after seeing the long-awaited railway system become operational.

Most of them said previously, they had to wait for up to half an hour or more to catch a bus or taxi, but with the start of the rail transport, they would now be able to arrive at their respective work places or schools on time.

Ethiopia's rail way, which is the first urban light rail transit system in sub-Saharan Africa reportedly has the capacity to transport 15,000 passengers per hour in one direction.

The Ethiopian government is spending hundreds of millions of dollars to build modern transport systems to support development. With an average annual 11% economic growth, Ethiopia is one of the world's ten fastest growing economies.

Ethiopia which intends to be a regional power exporter however is recently being hit by severe power blackouts.

But officials told Sudan Tribune that the electric power for the railway is directly connected to the main grid and blackouts won't affect route of trains.

The US $ 475 million double track electrified light rail transit project was launched by China's Eryuan Engineering Group in January 2012 under a contract signed in June 2009.

China's Export-Import Bank provided loans to cover 85% of the project while the remaining 15% was financed by the Ethiopian government.

Meanwhile, Arkebe Equbay, special adviser on economic affairs to the Ethiopian prime minister said Ethiopia was planning to build Africa's first Railway Academy.

According to government official, the aim is to build up qualified expertise in the field of railway engineering to run the railway projects now being undertaken in Ethiopia.

The railway academy will be built at the cost of $39.3 million using funds secured from China.

“The Academy would be an important element in accomplishing the goals of the Growth and Transformation Plan II”, said Arkebe.

Ethiopia's five year Growth and Transformation Plan (GTP I) has been completed earlier on September and the second five year GTP is launched during which the horn of Africa's nation intends to accomplish a number of massive projects including Africa's largest power plant project. The country intends to join middle income countries by 2025 however some economists say it is an over ambitious plan.

(ST)

September 21, 2015 (JUBA) - South Sudan's rival parties to the conflict have concluded a one week long ceasefire workshop without reaching consensus over contentious matters to sign a deal and form a joint command as part of the security arrangement.

South Sudan's rebel leader Riek Machar, second left, looks across after shaking hands with South Sudan's President Salva Kiir, center-right wearing a black hat, after lengthy peace negotiations in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia Monday, Aug. 17, 2015 (Photo AP/Mulugeta Ayene)

Both representatives of the two warring sides cited differences over the size of the protection force required to remain at the national capital, Juba, with the government proposing at least an army division between 10,000 and 18,000 soldiers should be deployed to remain in Juba during the transitional period.

Armed opposition officials say such arrangement amounts to militarization of the capital in violation of the provisions of the agreement which demands the demilitarization and deployment of joint police.

These divergences of the views about transitional security arrangement at the workshop led to the failure of the armed opposition representatives to sign a deal on the implementation matrix of the permanent ceasefire agreement in Addis Ababa last week because it failed to demilitarize the capital, Juba.

General Dau Aturjong Nyuol, deputy chief of general staff for training and the overall commander of the opposition forces in Bahr el Ghazal region, blamed the government for intransigence at the workshop to reach a consensus to sign a security arrangement matrix on the implementation of permanent ceasefire.

“The team that went to the workshop from Juba was either not ready for a consensus or was not given the opportunity to read the document (peace agreement). If you read the agreement, you find that it is clearly stated that Juba will be demilitarised. It will not have more forces but now these talks of protection force of 5,000 soldiers and 3,000 integrated police. This is not demilitarisation,” General Aturjong, who was part of the leading opposition commanders at the workshop, said on Monday.

He explained during an exclusive interview with Sudan Tribune that demilitarisation means taking the army away from the capital city and not deploying more forces contrary to the provisions of the peace agreement.

However, the senior opposition commander revealed the parties in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, have agreed on the withdrawal of all foreign forces in the country by October 10, despite disagreement on the nature of the Joint Integrated Police Unit and the number of presidential guards.

The foreign forces targeted and which will now have to leave or stand down include Uganda People's Defence Forces who were deployed in Juba after the outbreak of fighting in December 2013 to shore up President Kiir's government under a special arrangement with Uganda's President Yoweri Museveni.

Others are the Sudanese Revolutionary Forces (SPLM-North) that are also fighting the Khartoum government in Southern Kordofan and Blue Nile and the Dafur-based rebels, the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM), the Sudan Liberation Army-Minawi (SLA-MM) and SLA-AW led by Abdul Wahid.

The agreement however exempts Uganda People's Defence Forces (UPDF) based in Yambio, Western Equatoria state, because they had been deployed in 2010 as part of the African Union Joint Force to pursue Joseph Kony's Lord's Resistance Army.

PRESIDENTIAL GUARDS

On the issue of the presidential guard, the government delegation had demanded 17,000 presidential guards but Riek Machar-led rebel movement rejected the number arguing that it was too high and that the shared presidential guards could be about 2,000 to 3,000.

Observers say the government had taken advantage of the loophole in the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) Compromise Peace Agreement which did not give the numbers, leaving it for the partners to negotiate. The earlier proposal had provided that President Kiir retains 265 presidential guards while the first vice-president-to-be Machar was supposed to have 195 guards.

These latest agreements were arrived at a workshop on security arrangement that was convened by IGAD in Addis Ababa from September 13-17.

General Aturjong argued that while the government side believes that the police unit will comprise small group of 1,000 to guard the civilians in Juba only, the rebel movement believes that there has to be a new police body where both sides contribute equally depending on the overall number agreed on.

Speaking to the state owned South Sudan Television on Friday the information minister Michael Makuei Lueth said the government delegation that went to Addis Ababa last week to attend the workshop on the implementation of a permanent ceasefire had returned with information that the rebels had refused to sign the security arrangements but other representatives of former detainees had signed.

“Yesterday (Thursday 18) the delegation that went to the workshop came back yesterday to inform us that the agreement on the implementation of the permanent ceasefire was signed by the government delegation and the former detainee delegation, and the rebels rejected the signing of the agreement. So the ball is now in the court of IGAD and the rebels,” he said.

(ST)

The United Nations Security Council took note of the recent appointment of Carlos Correia as the Prime Minister of Guinea-Bissau as an important step towards ending the country’s political crisis, and stressed the importance of forming a new Government at the earliest.

United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has condemned the multiple bomb attacks at a mosque and nearby areas conducted by suspected Boko Haram elements in Maiduguri in north-east Nigeria on Sunday.

Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon today strongly condemned reports of violence against civilians in Burkina Faso and urged the country’s defense and security forces, especially the Presidential Guard, to exercise restraint and respect the human rights of all citizens.

September 20, 2015 (KHARTOUM) – A former adviser of Sudanese President Omer Hassan al-Bashir described the country's situation as worse after the national dialogue initiative rolled out in January 2014.

Chairman of the Reform Now Movement (RNM) Ghazi Salah al-Din al-Attabani

The head of the Reform Now Movement (RNM) Ghazi Salah al-Din al-Attabani said in an op-ed for Sudan Tribune titled 'Sorry pal! we may be barking up the wrong tree' that Bashir made “extravagant promises” during his address to the nation that month which became known as the " leap" speech.

“He overused the newfangled word leap, denoting reform, change, or transformation,” said al-Attabani who split from Bashir's ruling party in late 2013.

“Despite the enigma shrouding the speech, making it open to different interpretations, we all embraced the message calling it constructive and timely. What happened in the next twenty months was an anticlimax,” he added.

Al-Attabani said that twenty months later “the situation is worse”.

“The four crises besetting the nation -the war, economy, foreign relations, constitutional reform- show no sign of abating. The government has decided to throw its own party. Following its trademark technique, it decided to have its own national dialogue. The idea is to maintain intellectual discipline and keep control over the proceedings”.

“A unique opportunity presented itself on 5 September 2014, when delegates from government parties, opposition, and armed groups signed an accord in Addis Ababa, under the auspices of the African Union Panel AUHIP. The ball was in the penalty area waiting for the striker, but the latter had other plans”.

He recalled similar dialogue initiative in Kenana in 2008 aimed at discussing Darfur conflict.

“No one cared to send a decent invitation to the armed groups to attend. The result: an impressive gathering and a comprehensive final report. In the next few days hardly anyone remembered a thing of what the Kenana Conference produced, least of all the armed groups who were conspicuous by their absence”.

“It was a classic case of the dog barking up the wrong tree,” the opposition figure said.

Bashir announced on August 20th his willingness for a two-month ceasefire in Blue Nile and South Kordofan states and Darfur region in order to hold the dialogue in a "healthy atmosphere".

This week the umbrella group of Sudanese Revolutionary Front (SRF) offered to sign a cessation of hostilities for six months in Blue Nile and South Kordofan states and Darfur region provided that Khartoum be committed to the inclusive dialogue process and accept the pre-dialogue process.

The government said it is still deliberating over the offer before announcing an opinion.

Beside the rebels, several major opposition parties remain outside the dialogue and particularly the National Umma Party (NUP) and the Sudanese Communist Party (SCP).

(ST)

September 21, 2015 (JUBA) – Government of South Sudan said the reason president Salva Kiir will not travel to New York to attend summit by the United Nations General Assembly is because he has been treated like a "school boy" by the world body and will instead delegate his deputy, James Wani Igga, to represent him at the event in protest.

South Sudanese president Salva Kiir (AFP)

The UN secretary general, Ban Ki Moon, on 10 September officially informed the rival leaders in the South Sudan's 20-month long civil war, president Kiir and armed opposition leader, Riek Machar, to attend a high profile summit of the UN General Assembly on 29 September by heads of states and governments from around the world.

The opposition leader, Machar, announced he would lead his delegation and attend the New York summit.

However, government's minister of foreign affairs and international cooperation, Barnaba Marial Benjamin, told Sudan Tribune last week that president Kiir will not travel and will rather delegate his deputy to attend the world summit on South Sudan. He fell short of explaining the reason behind the decision.

But information minister, Michael Makuei Lueth, on Friday revealed to reporters in Juba that the decision was made in protest of how their president was being treated by the world body, complaining that the world has reduced president Kiir to a “school boy.”

He also said president Kiir was given a short notice to travel to New York, despite the information which indicated that there was a gap of 18 days between the notice and the day of the summit in New York.

"You cannot just invite a president and give him short notice like a school boy to come and attend your meetings,” Makuei angrily told reporters in the capital, Juba.

The minister also predicted that it would be difficult for the United States government to give visas to many of the president Kiir's officials who may travel with him to the UN summit as another reason for the protest in order to avoid “embarrassment.”

"Going to America, as you know is a problem, in terms of visa. Yes they can give the president the visa, but they can obstruct the going of others who are accompanying the president. So in order to avoid all this embarrassment, the vice-president James Wani Igga is going to attend," he stressed.

The summit will be the first high profile world meeting of top leaders to galvanize support to the full implementation of the peace agreement signed in August by the warring parties in South Sudan.

Opposition leader, Machar, also said he would meet president Kiir in New York on the sidelines of the UN summit to be organized by the UN secretary general, Ban Ki Moon. It is not however clear whether this meeting will take place if president Kiir will not travel to attend the world gathering on South Sudan.

Observers have argued that by refusing to attend the UN summit on his country in New York, president Kiir will be making yet another diplomatic mistake similar to the time he refused to sign the peace agreement on 17 August in Addis Ababa.

Other sources, however, speculate that the president had been reluctant to leave South Sudan in fear of anti-peace senior political and military leaders who might overthrow him in his absence and wants to monitor the situation at home.

(ST)

September 20, 2015 (KHARTOUM) - Sudan's international cooperation minister Kamaleldin Hassan has praised the development projects that the Italian government is implementing in the countr,y pointing that such support is needed for peace and regional stability.

International cooperation minister Kamaleldin Hassan (SUNA photo)

On Sunday, Hassan received the Italian ambassador to Sudan Fabrizio Lobasso, and discussed with him the development projects that Italy is implementing in Eastern Sudan.

The Sudanese Minister "expressed his appreciation for the excellent Italian expertise (in the development) field, not just in the bilateral context but also through its leadership in implementing important European programmes," said a statement extended to Sudan Tribune by the Italian embassy in Khartoum.

He further said that the Italian projects are instrumental for the social stability as they aim to improve difficult conditions of vulnerable people and contribute to establish the necessary condition for political stability.

Earlier this month, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) announced that Italian government granted 600,000 euro for an Integrated Food Security and Livelihoods Project (IFSLP) that will target 7.500 households in Kessala and Red Sea states.

Ambassador Lobasso said that Italian support to the Sudanese people aims to achieve productive projects in the sectors of health and rural development. he added that a special focus is given to the eastern Sudan region .

Sudanese officials criticize the humanitarian assistance provided by different western nations, saying this money can be used to fund sustainable food and development projects.

During its six-month rotational presidency of the European Union in 2014, the Italian government worked to launch the EU-Horn of Africa Migration Route Initiative aka Khartoum Process, which aims to tackle trafficking of migrants between the Horn of Africa and Europe.

(ST)

September 20, 2015(BOR) - The grassroot reconciliatory approach to achieve peace has proved a reality as cross-border cattle trading activities between communities in Uror and Ayod counties on South Sudan's Jonglei state have greaty improved, an official said.

Hundreds of patients listen to Jonglei state officials visiting Ayod - 26.08.2010 (ST)

According to the Uror county commissioner, Mabior Bol, hundreds of cattle arrive daily at Duk county border from both Ayod and Uror as Nuer tribesmen search forfor potential markets.

The booming trade activities, he disclosed, extends upto Panyagoor in Twic East county.

Mabior, in an interview with Sudan Tribune, confirmed that cattle trading was a major step in realising the real meanings of reconciliation and forgiveness in communities.

“We from the state here as the commissioners of Jonglei state we started peace process on the ground since February last years. Now between the greater Bor areas and the areas of Lou Nuer we have no problem”, the commissioner said Saturday.

“Now the Nuer come from Ayod and Uror to sell their cattle in Duk and go back with food items for their families. Everything they eat now comes from Dinka Bor areas. This made them understand that the war was not about Dinka Bor, it means peace on ground will be 100 percent reachable without violent”, stressed Mabior.

The Uror county commissioner, howver, blamed the Lou Nuer white army fighters of their continued attack on the government forces in the oil-rich Upper Nile and Unity states.

“You hear that the white has crossed to Malakal and Bentiu. They are, maybe part of the fighters who violated peace several times”, Mabior claimed, further alleging that some senior rebel generals were still using the white army to help them fight government forces.

(ST).

September 20, 2015 (KHARTOUM) – The minister of state at the Sudanese Ministry of Justice Ahmed Abu-Zeid cleared the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) militia from any abuses saying that their formation is on voluntary basis and were trained and incorporated into the army.

RSF troops in camouflage and draped with ammunition show off the spoils from a major clash with the rebel (JEM), in Nyala 13 May 2015 (Photo AFP/Ashraf Shazly)

Abu-Zeid, who returned home from Geneva where the UN meetings of Human Rights Council are taking place, told Sudan news agency (SUNA) that the government has shown great interest in the Darfur in terms of development and justice through the rule of law, reconciliation and peaceful coexistence.

He pointed to a workshop organized by the special Darfur crimes prosecutor in Geneva that was attended by a large number of interested parties and human rights monitors in which he refuted the allegations of mass rape committed in the village of Tabit in North Darfur.

The prosecutor explained that Darfur saw the deployment of more prosecutors and mobile courts in line with the government's plan to achieve stability and development.

Abu-Zeid also noted that they informed the human rights organizations that RSF are not existing as a separate force.

The RSF, which is widely known as the Janjaweed militias, were originally mobilized by the Sudanese government to quell the insurgency that broke out in Sudan's western region of Darfur in 2003.

The militia was reactivated and restructured again in August 2013 under the command of NISS to fight the alliance of rebel groups from Darfur region, South Kordofan and Blue Nile states following joint attacks in North and South Kordofan in April 2013.

Abu-Zeid also denied imposing restrictions on the freedom of expression and pointed out that the government does not own the media or newspapers which at times are highly critical of state policies.

The official acknowledged however that some newspapers are suspended when they violate the Press and Publications Law.

(ST)

September 20, 2015 (KHARTOUM) - Sudan's National Intelligence and Security Services (NISS) on Sunday has seized print runs of Al-Khartoum daily newspaper.

Members of Sudanese Journalists Network (SJN) hold banners outside the National Council for Press and Publication (NCPP) premises in Khartoum in protest against repeated seizure of newspapers, on May 26, 2015 (ST photo)

Several journalists working for Al-Khartoum said that NISS was likely punishing the newspaper for publishing a cartoon ridiculing the government-led dialogue process.

It is worth mentioning that NISS has carried out a confiscation campaign against the newspapers since last Friday despite the promises made by the dialogue body known as 7+7 to take measures to create conducive climate including stopping arrests, lifting of censorship on newspapers and allowing public and personal freedoms.

NISS has seized copies of Al-Sudani newspaper on Friday and Saturday from the printing house for publishing a report on water pollution and a series of columns by the newspaper's chief-editor criticizing the arrest of the female journalist, Hiba Abdel-Azeem who made the report.

However, the confiscation of the print runs of Al-Khartoum newspaper represents a rare precedent because it was likely due to publishing a cartoon in the front page.
The caricature depicts the NCP in the form of a man struggling to reach the dialogue which was drawn in the form of a woman and saying “I love dialogues to death”.

Cartoonist Hashim Karouri who draw the caricature told Sudan Tribune that he meant to send a message saying that the ongoing dialogue is futile because it is fully controlled by the ruling National Congress Party (NCP).

He said that the Al-Khartoum has adopted a new editorial policy allowing cartoons to appear in the front page which is considered a rare move in Sudan's local newspapers.
Al-Karouri added that he doesn't belong to any political party, saying he takes the side of the Sudanese people who suffer from the spiraling cost of living and the differences among politicians.

He demanded the government to magnanimously accept the free criticism, saying “we don't mean to offend anybody but we speak a language understandable to the ordinary citizens”.

Sudan's constitution guarantees freedom of expression but laws subordinate to the constitution such as the National Security Forces Act of 2010 contains articles that can be potentially used to curtail press freedom and instigate legal proceedings against newspapers and individual journalists.

Sudanese journalists work under tight daily censorship controls exercised by the NISS.
Journalists say that NISS uses seizures of print copies of newspapers, not only to censor the media but also to weaken them economically.

September 20, 2015 (KHARTOUM) - Sudan's dialogue coordination committee known as 7+7 has welcomed the willingness of the rebel umbrella Sudan Revolutionary Front (SRF) to sign a cessation of hostilities for six months in the Blue Nile, South Kordofan and Darfur.

3rd meeting of the national dialogue national assembly in Khartoum on Thursday 20 August 2015 (Photo - SUNA)

SRF factions including the Sudan People's Liberation Movement - North (SPLM-N) Justice and Equality Movement (JEM) and the SLM- Minni Minnawi (SLM-MM) held a series of meetings in Paris from 10 to 14 September dedicated to the SRF roadmap for peace and national dialogue in Sudan.

The three rebel groups expressed their readiness to sign a cessation of hostilities for six months in Blue Nile and South Kordofan states and Darfur region provided that Khartoum be committed to the inclusive dialogue process and accept the pre-dialogue process.

Following a meeting held on Sunday, the 7+7 committee issued a statement emphasizing the need for holding an exclusive Sudanese dialogue on the bases of its roadmap approved in August 2014, the Addis Ababa agreement with the African Union High-Level Implementation Panel (AUHIP) signed in September 2014 and the committee's statement on the African Union Peace and Security Council (AUPSC) resolution 539 in August 2015.

“We welcome the announcement by the armed movements in Darfur, South Kordofan and the Blue Nile to a cease fire in appreciation for president [Omer al-Bashir] decision in August 2015 to offer amnesty [for the rebels] and to declare cease fire”, the statement read.

On August 20 th, Bashir said he is ready to declare a two-month ceasefire in Blue Nile, South Kordofan states and Darfur region and renewed his offer of amnesty for the rebel who are willing to join the national dialogue.

The dialogue body further called on all the warring parties to immediately sign a cessation of hostilities agreement in order to protect civilians, provide humanitarian assistance and create an environment conducive for holding the national dialogue.

Also, it called for holding a meeting to discuss the necessary requirements for the participation of the arms bearers in the national dialogue, and praised the supportive role played by the African Union, friendly neighbouring nations and the international community to achieve peace and stability in Sudan.

Political and armed holdout groups refuse to join the dialogue process under the current conditions, asking first to stop war, allow humanitarian access to civilians in the rebel held areas and to ensure political freedoms.

Meanwhile, the political secretary of the opposition Popular Congress Party (PCP) and member of the 7+7 committee Kamal Omer Abdel-Salam said in a press statement Sunday the meeting of the dialogue coordination body underscored the need to intensify contacts to bring in holdout opposition and rebel groups.

“It [the committee] also stressed the need to visit several states in the region to brief them on the developments of the dialogue and ask them to mediate to convince the armed movements and [opposition] parties to participate in the dialogue,” he added.

He told Sudan Tribune that delegation from the 7+7 committee will visit Chad, Egypt, Ethiopia and Uganda to ask for their mediation to convince the holdouts to join the dialogue process.

Abdel-Salam also said that several heads of states and ambassadors will be invited to attend the official inauguration of the national dialogue on October 10th.

Regarding complaints of newspapers against repeated confiscations by the security services, Omer said they seek to protect freedoms until the current laws were amended, noting that dialogue's regulations state that the judiciary is the guarantor for liberties.

(ST)

September 20, 2015 (JUBA) - Authorities in South Sudan's oil producing Unity state have sent condolences to the government and family members of the victims who died in Maridi county, Western Equatoria state, where fuel tanker exploded resulting on Wednesday in the loss of more than 176 lives and wounding dozens others.

SPLA soldiers, from the 2nd Battalion pose at the SPLA headquarters in Nyang, in the county of Yirol East, on February 15, 2014 (Photo AFP/Fabio Bucciarelli)

Senior government officials, including president Salva Kiir, have issued statements expressing regrets and sent condolences and announced three days of national mourning. The national government announced on Friday that the incident would be mourned across the country.

Unity state's government, in a show of solidarity with the people and government of Western Equatoria state, issued a statement extended to Sudan Tribune on Saturday extending heartfelt condolences and regrets for the loss of lives and destruction of properties resulting from the incident.

“On behalf of the Unity state government and the people of Unity state, I wish to extend condolences for those who have lost their lives and to express sympathy to their families and all those affected by the tragic accident,” the statement bearing the seal and official logo of Unity state reads in part.

Lam Tunguar, Unity state minister of youth, culture and sports told Sudan Tribune that the people and government of Unity state share the grief of the Western Equatoria state government and people during this difficult time.

“As the people of Unity state we stand with them in this hard time and this should be a time where all South Sudanese should come together to mourn this tragedy which had befallen our people in Western Equatoria state, particularly the family members of the tank explosion incident in Maridi county,” said Tunguar.

On the other hand, he added, the police should be more practical in cautioning truck and tanker drivers with dangerous liquids that they carry and state governments must also sensitize people on this of dangerous goods.

(ST)

September 20, 2015 (JUBA) - South Sudan government has commemeded diplomatic efforts by its foreign affairs ministry to strenghten ties and relations with other countries.

South Sudanese Foreign Minister Barnaba Marial Benjamin (L) meets with Sudanese counterpart Ibrahim Ghandour (R) for talks under mediation of Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov in Moscow, Russia, September 10, 2015 (Photo Reuters/Maxim Shemetov)

The young nation's information minister, Michael Makuei Lueth told the state-owned SSTV that the council of ministers was, at its Friday meeting, briefed by his foreign affairs counterpart, Barnaba Marial Benjamin on his recent trip to East Africa and Russia.

The council of ministers, during its meeting chaired by President Salva Kiir, reportedly praised Marial for his successful mission to Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania and Russia.

"The council commended and appreciated the efforts exerted by the minister of foreign affairs in his recent regional tour of Uganda, Tanzania, Kenya and successfully ended his mission with a meeting with Sudanese foreign minister in Russia where he managed to secure the support of the Russian government to block the imposition of sanctions. As the government, we commend and appreciate the government of Russia, Angola, china and Venezuela with standing with us in our quest for peace," Lueth said on Saturday.

This is not time for sanctions. The people of South Sudan and the government need peace and support for implementation of peace agreement, not sanctions”, he added.

Meanwhile, Gordon Buay, a government representatives at its diplomatic mission in the United States separately told Sudan Tribune that the people of South Sudan were extremely delighted with the performance of their diplomats in Moscow for improving diplomatic relations between the world's youngest nation and the Russian Federation.

According to Buay, the friendly relationship between the people of the Republic of South Sudan and the Russian people goes back to the time of the armed liberation struggle.

“It should be noted that the former Soviet Union supported the SPLM/A militarily for eight years to fight for the freedom of the people of South Sudan. The support the SPLA Movement obtained from Russia during the cold war from 1983—91 gave the people of South Sudan the opportunity to liberate themselves from their oppressors”, he said.

South Sudanese diplomats in Russia, he stressed, did a "marvelous" job in persuading the Russian government to help bring together Sudan and the Republic of South Sudan.

Buay further explained that the bilateral talks, which took place on 10 September, 2015, and eventually led to joint communique from the foreign ministers of Sudan and South Sudan, could be credited to the diplomatic work of South Sudan diplomats in Moscow.

“Most importantly, the South Sudan diplomats in Moscow should be congratulated and appreciated for persuading the Russian Federation to reject and oppose sanctions that were proposed by some Western countries at the UN Security Council against individuals in South Sudan”, he said.

Russia was one of the countries that recognised the independence of South Sudan when it broke away from Sudan in July, 2011. This followed a referendum held earlier that year.

(ST)

By Ghazi Salahuddin Atabani*

President Omer Hassan al-Bashir made extravagant promises while addressing the nation on January 2014. His speech came to be known as the " leap" speech. He overused the newfangled word "leap", denoting reform, change, or transformation.

Despite the enigma shrouding the speech, making it open to different interpretations, we all embraced the message calling it constructive and timely. What happened in the next twenty months was an anticlimax.

A unique opportunity presented itself on 5 September 2014, when delegates from government parties, opposition, and armed groups signed an accord in Addis Ababa, under the auspices of the African Union High Level Implementation Panel AUHIP. The ball was in the penalty area waiting for the striker, but the latter had other plans.

Twenty months after the enigmatic speech, the situation is worse. The four crises besetting the nation -the war, economy, foreign relations, constitutional reform- show no sign of abating. The government has decided to throw its own National Congress Party (NCP). Following its trademark technique, it decided to have its own national dialogue. The idea is to maintain intellectual discipline and keep control over the proceedings.

The talk of the town is of Kenana-2. In Kenana-1, not less than 600 dignitaries from all walks of life gathered at the posh resort of Kenana Sugar Factory to discuss Darfur. No one cared to send a decent invitation to the armed groups to attend. The result: an impressive gathering and a comprehensive final report. In the next few days hardly anyone remembered a thing of what the Kenana Conference produced, least of all the armed groups who were conspicuous by their absence. It was a classic case of the dog barking up the wrong tree.

Dr. Ghazi Salahuddin Atabani, is the chairman of the opposition Reform Now Movement (RNM)

The United Nations Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL) on Sunday strongly condemned the military escalation in Benghazi and called for an immediate ceasefire, stressing the need to give the ongoing political dialogue a chance to bring the country&#39s conflict to an end.

The top United Nations humanitarian official for the Sahel today commended the immense generosity of the Government and host communities in Niger which are hosting those fleeing violence in neighbouring Nigeria, and called on the international community to take its responsibility for a greater share of the “humanitarian burden.”

United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon welcomed the release today of the Transitional President of Burkina Faso who was detained along with several other officials following this week’s coup d’état, and reiterated his demand that all those being held be freed immediately.

The number of attacks by Boko Haram in northeast Nigeria and neighbouring countries has risen, and half a million children have had to flee to safety in the past five months, bringing the total number of displaced children in the region to 1.4 million, the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) said today.