May 24, 2015 (KHARTOUM) – The Sudanese cabinet on Thursday will hold its final meeting on Thursday to mark the end of its term before president Omer Hassan al-Bashir's swearing in ceremony in early June.
Sudan Tribune has learned that senior government figures received formal invitations to attend the meeting which was postponed from its original date of May 25th.
Bashir is expected to address the ministers and thank them for their efforts in the past period before taking a full photo of the cabinet.
In a related issue, it is expected that the Council of States and the National assembly would hold separate meetings in which its members will take the oath office and new speakers will be elected.
Some reports said that former parliament speaker Ahmed Ibrahim al-Tahir is the likely candidate to preside over the Council of States while former Vice president Ali Osman Taha could become the speaker of the parliament.
The ruling National Congress Party (NCP) will hold a meeting on Wednesday with the issue of the new cabinet topping the agenda.
However, it is not clear if the decisions will be made at that meeting.
Bashir could issue a decree delegating the Undersecretaries to run their ministries until a new cabinet is sworn in.
Besides the NCP, the cabinet will include other pro-government parties such as the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) and the Darfuri Liberation and Justice Movement (LJM).
Bashir and the NCP secured a landslide victory in the elections held last April that were shunned by most major opposition parties and discredited by the United States and European Union (EU).
It was also marked by very low turnout that was attributed to apathy of Sudanese voters.
(ST)
24 May 2015
KHARTOUM - The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) today welcomed a contribution of €9 million (US$9.7 million) from the European Commission's Humanitarian Aid and Civil Protection Department (ECHO) to its emergency operations in Sudan.
The funds will help WFP prevent hunger and treat malnutrition among the most vulnerable people in Sudan. WFP will use the contribution to provide life-saving food assistance to more than 152,000 displaced people in West and South Darfur for two months, as well as to more than 193,000 newly displaced people across Darfur for four months. This includes people who were displaced in 2014 and have not been able to return home, in addition to those who have been displaced since January this year.
The contribution will also be used to buy Super Cereal Plus (a nutritious porridge) for the treatment of malnutrition in about 58,000 children aged under five, pregnant women and nursing mothers in the Darfur region and in the states of Kassala, Red Sea.
"The humanitarian situation in Sudan remains critical following years of conflict, natural disasters and underdevelopment. The response to acute malnutrition is one of the main strategic pillars of intervention of the European Commission in the country, with the purpose of saving the lives of children under the age of five,” said ECHO Head of Office in Khartoum Jeroen Uytterschaut. “The European Commission and the EU as a whole is among the main donors for humanitarian assistance in Sudan and thanks to our partnership with the World Food Programme, hundreds of thousands of Sudanese will continue receiving life-saving food aid.”
The EU is a major donor to WFP Sudan, providing €22.9 million in support of emergency operations from 2014 to 2015. Since 2012, ECHO has contributed more than €67 million towards WFP's emergency operations and a further €9.8 million towards the United Nations Humanitarian Air Service (UNHAS), managed by WFP, which provides safe and reliable passenger and light cargo services to the entire humanitarian community in Sudan.
“We are very grateful to ECHO for their continous support to WFP's operations in Sudan. This latest contribution will help us reach vulnerable groups in the country through both life-saving and nutritional asistance, especially during the lean season when food stocks are depleted and children and mothers in need could easily slide into malnutrition,” said WFP Sudan Country Director Adnan Khan.
In 2014, ECHO's contribution enabled WFP to assist some 80,800 children, pregnant women and nursing mothers mostly in Kassala and Red Sea states. It also supported some 38,350 refugees in Kassala state, 149,500 vulnerable people in South Kordofan and another 35,000 internally displaced people in North Kordofan through food voucher programmes.
In 2015, WFP plans to assist 3.7 million people across Sudan, of whom 2.7 million live in the conflict-affected region of Darfur, internally displaced people in Blue Nile and South Kordofan, refugees in Kassala state and other food insecure vulnerable groups elswhere in the country.
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WFP is the world's largest humanitarian agency fighting hunger worldwide, delivering food assistance in emergencies and working with communities to improve nutrition and build resilience. Each year, WFP assists some 80 million people in around 75 countries.
Follow us on Twitter @wfp_media and @wfp_africa
For more information please contact (email address: firstname.lastname@wfp.org):
Amor Almagro, WFP/Khartoum, Tel. +249 183248001 (ext. 2114), Mob. +249 912174853
Abdulaziz Abdulmomin, WFP/Khartoum, Tel. +249 183248001 (ext. 2123), Mob. +249 912167055
By Tesfa-Alem Tekle
May 24, 2015 (ADDIS ABABA) - An Eritrean opposition group on Saturday called on other exiled opposition organization for a more unified military action to depose the regime og president Isaias Afewerki.
The Ethiopian based Red Sea Afar Democratic Organization (RSADO), made his call for opposition unity one day ahead of the Eritrean nation sets to celebrate the 24th Independence Day anniversary.
RSADO chairman, Ibrahim Haroun, told Sudan Tribune that although the country secured independence in a hard owned struggle, the government however never guaranteed democratic rights of the Eritrean people.
Haroun said the regime instead ignored the long war of liberation aimed to produce a unified Eritrea and favoured to establish a one-party state by destroying all other opposition parties forcing them to exile.
The opposition leader accused the Eritrean leader Afeworki of dividing unity of the nation and nationalities of the people in order to secure grip on power.
The Eritrean president had been in power since 1991, when the country gained independence from Ethiopia after 30 years of freedom for struggle.
However, the Red Sea nation-under Isaias-rule had never conducted election since independence nor did it implemented the constitution ratified in 1997.
Last year, during the 23thd Independence Day anniversary the Eritrean president pledged to draft a new constitution however that has never happened.
The rebel leader, Haroun says the game being played by the president is enough and it is about all opposition forces as well as the Eritrean Army to join a planned wider military strike to topple the regime and build a new democratic Eritrea.
Haroun called on regional actors and on the international community to support the Afar rebel movement and put pressure on the regime to stop human right violations including ethnic cleansing against Afar minorities.
Considered militarily stronger than the other exiled Eritrean opposition groups, RSADO vows to intensify attacks against the Eritrean regime.
Meanwhile some 4,000 Eritrean refugees residing at camps in Ethiopia's Afar regional state town's of Asayta and Berahle Camps on Saturday rallied in protest to the ongoing oppression in Eritrean against Eritreans.
They called on the international community to intervene to stop the human right violations in the Red Sea nation.
(ST)
May 24, 2015 (KHARTOUM) – The Sudanese president Omer Hassan al-Bashir concluded a short visit to Qatar on Sunday, a day after he returned from Saudi Arabia for talks with officials there.
Bashir arrived in Doha this morning accompanied by his defence minister Abdel-Rahim Mohamed Hussein, the minister of foreign affairs Ali Karti besides several other senior officials.
Qatar news agency (QNA) said that Bashir discussed with the Emir Sheikh Tamim Bin Hamad al-Thani regional and international issues of common concern particularly the recent developments in the area.
According to information obtained by Sudan Tribune, Bashir's trips to Riyadh and Doha were prompted by the recent developments in the Arab world particularly the crisis in Yemen and Syria beside the situation in Egypt following the death sentences handed down against the ousted president Mohamed Morsi and his aides from the Muslim Brotherhood.
Well placed sources said that talks between Bashir and Saudi King Salman Bib Abdel-Aziz were likely dominated by the political and military developments in Yemen, noting that Sudan enjoys reasonable acceptance by the Yemeni popular resistance groups which are fighting the Houthi rebels believed to be backed by Iran. .
It added that the two leaders might have also discussed participation of special Sudanese forces in securing areas inside Yemen and training resistance groups.
The same sources further noted that Bashir's talks in Riyadh tackled developments in Syria, pointing that Sudan is qualified to play a pivotal role to achieve political settlement in Syria due to its ties with Bashar al-Assad's regime.
Ties between Khartoum and Riyadh appear to have warmed up after years of tense relations. Hours after Bashir's visit to Riyadh last March, it was announced that Sudan has joined the Saudi-led military coalition in Yemen.
Khartoum's close ties with Tehran were the main cause of cool relations with Riyadh. Last year, Sudan closed Iranian cultural centers in the country which was seen as a gesture of goodwill towards Arab Gulf states.
Karti said in press statements at Khartoum airport upon return form Doha that the visit came to satisfy an invitation extended to Bashir by the Qatari Emir during their meeting on the sidelines of Egypt's economic development conference held in Sharm El-Sheikh last March.
He disclosed that Bashir filled in Tamim on Sudan's internal situation particularly the implementation of the Doha Document for Peace in Darfur (DDPD) signed in Doha besides relations with South Sudan.
The foreign minister added that Bashir also briefed the Emir on his presidential program for the new term, stressing that the two sides agreed on the program.
According to Sudan's top diplomat, Bashir expressed appreciation to Qatar's government and peoples for their continued efforts to peace in Sudan, saying that DDPD met the entire demands of the people of Darfur.
Bashir also praised the role of Qatari investments in supporting Sudanese economy, saying it helped the country overcome economic shock caused by the secession of South Sudan which took with it 75% of the oil reserves.
The Sudanese president said the country would witness a new era of peace and stability, emphasizing that his government program until 2016 focuses on bringing rebellion and tribal conflicts to an end.
He added that the government also seeks to strengthen Sudan's foreign relations with friendly countries in the region and in the international arena, saying that Sudan welcomes Qatari investments to achieve Arab food security.
Bashir further said that his government offered more than 2 million acres suitable for farming besides providing investment opportunities in natural gas and electricity production to support agricultural investments.
He called for upgrading economic cooperation to economic integration in order to achieve interests of the two peoples.
The Qatari Emir for his part thanked Bashir for his visit, expressing satisfaction with the convergence of views on current Arab, regional and international issues.
He described his country's support to Sudan as a duty dictated by the fraternal ties between the two nations, stressing readiness to promote relations for the benefit of the two peoples.
Tamim announced Qatar's agreement to launch additional investment projects in Sudan, expressing hope that Sudan achieves further stability, progress and prosperity.
Karti expected that the two countries would continue communication during the coming period through mutual visits of technical teams and officials to implement the agreements reached between the two sides.
(ST)
May 24, 2015 (KHARTOUM) - The French ambassador to Khartoum, Bruno Aubert, has discussed with the general guide of the Samaniya Sufi Order, Mohamed al-Fatih Gharib Allah, the negative impact of terrorism on religions.
The French embassy had earlier received a statement issued by the Samaniya on the attack against the French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo.
The magazine has been the target of two terrorist attacks in 2011 and 2015. Both were presumed to be in response to a number of controversial cartoons it published depicting Prophet Mohamed. In the second of these attacks, 12 people were killed.
Aubert , who attended the Samainya weekly Dhikr (rhythmic repetition of the name of God or his attributes) on Friday, called for launching a worldwide dialogue to resolve terrorism problems, saying he is fully convinced that Islam is a religion of peace, tolerance and love and that the extremist don't represent Islam.
He said that his visit to the Samaniya comes within the framework of the social links with the various components of the Sudanese society, noting they discussed ties between the embassy and the Samaniya as part of the popular diplomacy.
The ambassador vowed to continue to visit the Samaniya and engage in a dialogue on issues of mutual concern.
Gharib Allah, for his part, underscored the need for dialogue on the causes of terrorism, pointing that all societies and religions suffer from extremism which emerge due to wrong understanding of the religious teachings.
“If Sufist teachings were applied, they would protect individual and society against extremism,” he said.
He demanded the French ambassador to apply the principle of justice in the European laws particularly on issues pertaining to forbidding insults against religions, adding that freedom in Europe is relative and not absolute as claimed by some people.
Last January, Tayba Press media centre in Khartoum prevented Aubert from speaking at a press conference organised for a French expert in protest of the re-publication of Charlie Hebdo cartoons.
The magazine's first issue after the attack featured a caricature of prophet Mohamed on the cover, an act considered blasphemous by many Muslims.
(ST)
May 23, 2015 (RUMBEK) – At least two top officials in South Sudan's Lakes state were killed on Friday at the border between Rumbek North county and Unity state.
The two were identified as Abraham Maloth Marrier, the commissioner of Rumbek North county and Elizabeth Poth Dumic, a state advisor.
Lakes state information and communication minister, Dhieu Wal Takping told reporters that the two officials were killed in Nyal territory located within Rumbek North county.
“We have received the body of commissioner Abraham Marier, but the body of advisor is not yet found till now,” said Takping.
“We suspect the ambush was laid by rebels under the command of Khamis Abdulatif,” he added.
An eye witness said the commissioner was escorting pro-government forces heading to encounter the armed opposition troops in Pinyjair county.
The unknown attackers reportedly also killed six of the commissioner's bodyguards.
The late Marier was appointed Rumbek North county commissioner in October 2014.
(ST)
May 24, 2015 (KHARTOUM) - The United Nations special rapporteur, Rashida Manjoo, has called on the Sudanese government to establish a probe commission to investigate allegations of mass rape by the Sudanese army in North Darfur state village of Tabit last November.
“I urge Sudan's government to establish a commission of inquiry comprised of national and international figures to investigate claims of mass rape in various areas including those pertaining to the village of Tabit in North Darfur,” said Manjoo in a press conference in Khartoum.
“In spite of the several but limited investigations and my visit, it is impossible to monitor and document claims of mass rape,” she added.
She attributed difficulty of conducting thorough investigation on mass rape claims to the absence of the evidence which meets requirements for holding objective and neutral probes without fear or nepotism or revenge.
Manjoo, who concluded a 12-day visit to Sudan on Sunday, said she visited Tabit accompanied by government troops and UN officials, noting she met with several women but was unable to hold individual meetings with any of the victims.
“I found them all in a state of denial and silence and we need to conduct further investigations to find out what really happened there,” she said
Last November, social media extensively circulated testimonies of victims from Tabit, a village 45 kilometres south-west of El-Fashir, capital of North Darfur, claiming that 200 women and minors were raped by Sudanese army soldiers.
Following these allegations, Sudanese authorities initially prevented a verification team from the hybrid peacekeeping mission in Darfur (UNAMID) from probing the claim but allowed them to visit the area one week later.
After the visit, UNAMID said they found no evidence confirming the mass rape claims.
However, Sudanese officials were angered by the remarks of UN officials who stressed the need for further investigation mentioning the heavy presence of military and police during the first probe.
Since then, Sudan refused to authorise a second investigation and called publicly for an exit strategy for the joint mission from Darfur.
(ST)
May 24, 2016 (KHARTOUM) - The East African regional bloc of the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) requested Sudan's president Omer al-Bashir to facilitate the ongoing efforts to end the inter-South Sudanese conflict.
Sudanese foreign minister Ali Karti disclosed Sunday that the Sudanese government accepted a demand by the regional body asking Bashir to be more involved in its efforts to bring peace in South Sudan as it prepares to launch a new mediation mechanism.
Karti who was speaking to reporters at Khartoum airport following a one-day visit by president Bashir to Qatar further said that the European Union and Norway asked to meet President Bashir for talks on the South Sudanese conflict.
The Sudanese top diplomat said Khartoum accepted the IGAD demand and vowed to undertake efforts in this respect after the swearing-in ceremony scheduled for June 2nd.
He also indicated that the European delegation will meet Bashir after this ceremony.
Sudan and Kenya are members of an IGAD mediation led by the Ethiopian envoy Seyoum Mesfin. However, Khartoum has kept a low profile fearing to be accused of interference in the South Sudanese affairs.
Following the collapse of the last round of talks in March 2015, IGAD decided to involve African Union, EU, UN Security Council and Troika countries in the mediation process which is labelled IGAD-Plus.
At the end of April Mesfin announced that Algeria, Chad, Nigeria, Rwanda and South Africa will be engaged in the peace process representing north, central, western, eastern and southern African regions, respectively.
Juba recently accused Khartoum of supporting the rebel SPLM-in-Opposition led by the former vice-president Riek Machar but the Sudanese government swiftly denied the accusation.
Sudanese foreign ministry spokesperson Ali al-Sadiq on Sunday vowed that his country would exert the necessary efforts to prevent further deterioration of the security situation in South Sudan, pointing it would help stop flow of new refugees.
"The stability of the South means stability of the situation in the North. It also means reducing the flow of southerners refugees and prevents any security threat to the country's border with the South" he said.
Sadiq further stressed that his country has no interest to intervene militarily in South Sudan. But he expressed the readiness of his government to evacuate Sudanese from the neighbouring country if the security situation continue to worsen.
(ST)
May 23, 2015 (KHARTOUM) - The Justice and Equality Movement (JEM) Saturday admitted the defection of two commanders who joined the ranks of a splinter faction signatory of the Doha Document for Peace in Darfur (DDPD) led by Bakheit Dabajo.
Dabajo faction, which is now a political group labelled Justice and Equality Party (JEP), announced the arrival to the Sudanese capital of two of its members who escaped from JEM jails with two rebel commanders who defected from the armed group.
JEP political secretary, Nahar Ahmed Nahar, announced that two members of his party : Tijani al-Tahir Karshoum and Ahmed Adam Abdel-Majid arrived to Khartoum in good health together with defector rebel commanders Hasabo Suleiman Hasabo and Abdallah Hassan Abdallah.
Nahar said the two prisoners and two defectors fled from South Sudan on 11 May after JEM defeat in South Darfur battle by the end of last April. He added that they were received by the border guards when they arrived to Abu Matareq area in Esat Darfur state and then transferred to Khartoum by the security service.
Reached by Sudan Tribune, JEM spokesperson Gibreel Adam Bilal confirmed the defection of the two commanders, but said that the formers prisoners escaped from the Movement's camps in Kordofan and not in South Sudan as it is claimed.
Bilal further minimized the impact of their defection, stressing that they would not deviate from their path.
"We also learned that they joined Dabajo group and this is normal. The Justice and Equality Movement will not be affected by the defection of one or two or even all those who are tired of the struggle and wanted to get out of the movement. We have no objection at all and they can directly join the National Congress (Party)," he said.
"The revolution will continue and will never stop," he added.
Following clashes in the Chad-Sudan border area in May 2013, JEM detained 17 commanders who had defected under the leader of Mohamed Bashar and signed a peace agreement with Khartoum government.
Bashar and his deputy Arko Dahia were killed and since their group is led by Bakheit Dabajo.
Nahar said their party would hold a press conference on the situation of their comrades detained by the JEM.
(ST)
May 23, 2015 (KAMPALA) - The African Union has supported calls for an arms embargo on South Sudan as fighting resumed between its warring parties, in violation of the cessations of hostilities agreement.
The AU commission, at the meeting held in Namibia, had briefed its Peace and Security Council on the developments and situation in South Sudan.
The Council expressed its concern over the deteriorating situation in South Sudan, including the escalation of hostilities and the grave humanitarian situation of civilians affected by the ongoing conflict.
The continental body criticised the warring parties for abandoning dialogue and resorting to war as a way to end their impasse.
The Council further noted that the people of South Sudan have already been devastated by war, and that the current escalation threatens to unleash irreversible consequences on the young nation.
“[The] council strongly condemned the resumption of hostilities in South Sudan and the untold suffering inflicted on the civilian population, in total disregard of International Humanitarian Law,” the AU said in a statement.
It further expressed deep disappointment over the failure of the leaders of the belligerent parties in South Sudan to rise above personal and factional political interests and put the national interest and well-being of their people first.
The council has stressed that these actions are wholly contrary to the expressed will of the AU, the Inter-Governmental Authority on Development, UN and the international community as a whole.
“In this regard, [the] council called for urgent steps by the sanctions committee, established pursuant to resolution 2206 (2015), to designate individuals and entities subject to the measures provided for therein. Council requested the UN Security Council to urgently consider the immediate imposition of an arms embargo on the belligerents,” its statement further read.
Meanwhile, the council reiterated its commitment to extend full support to the IGAD mediation efforts in South Sudan, notably through the early operationalisation of the AU High-Level ad hoc Committee, established by the Peace and Security Council in December 2014, and other related measures.
(ST)
May 23, 2015 (JUBA) - South Sudan leader, Salva Kiir has cautioned over calls for sanctions, saying it will worsen the country's ongoing conflict.
The warning comes amid renewed military clashes in recent weeks between South Sudan government forces and the armed opposition groups.
"At this time, discussion of sanctions is unproductive," said a statement from the presidency, adding “Sanctions will only serve to fan the flames of the current tensions”.
“They [sanction] will not speed up dialogue and compromise and they will not feed and employ the people of South Sudan,” it adds.
Violence erupted in the South Sudanese capital, Juba in December 2013 after political wrangles within the ruling party. President Kiir accused his former deputy, Riek Machar of an alleged coup attempt as fighting intensified in three of the nation's 10 state.
This week, the United Nations Security Council strongly condemned the renewed and ongoing large scale violence in South Sudan's Unity state, saying military offensives by pro-government forces had led to the displacement of over 100,000 civilians.
Over 300,000 civilians have reportedly been denied access to aid being provided by aid agencies and organisation as a result from fighting between the warring factions.
The 15-member UN body further condemned the large-scale attack by armed opposition forces in Malakal, the Upper Nile state capital on 15 May, 2015.
"The members of the Security Council condemn in the strongest terms the repeated violations of the Cessation of Hostilities Agreement ... and underscored that there is no military solution to this conflict," the council said in a statement.
"The members of the council further expressed their condemnation of the large-scale attack initiated by the SPLM/A (in Opposition) on the town of Malakal in Upper Nile State", the statement said.
Members of the council called on all the parties to engage meaningfully in the peace process so as to bring about a political solution to the crisis and an end to the conflict.
The council expressed concern about the worsening of the humanitarian crisis in the country and renewed its call for the parties to the conflict to allow and facilitate the "full, safe and unhindered access" of humanitarian personnel, equipment and supplies to all those in need and timely delivery of humanitarian assistance.
It further condemned all human rights violations and abuses and demanded an immediate end to them, noting that the government bears the primary responsibility to protect the civilians from abuses and from potential crimes against humanity and war crimes.
"They reiterated their willingness to impose sanctions against those who threaten the peace , security or stability of South Sudan as established in the resolution 2206 (2015) and noted the 24 March 2015 African Union Peace and Security Council communiqué on South Sudan and the 12 May 2015 African Union Commission Chairperson's Statement on South Sudan in this regard", it stated.
The UN says over 2 million people have been displaced, 1.5 million internally, and 500,000 in neighbouring countries as a result of the South Sudanese conflict, while over 2.5 million people likely to face food insecurity, especially in Greater Upper Nile region.
(ST)
May 23, 2015 (JUBA/ADDIS ABABA) - South Sudanese army (SPLA) has been accused of killing based on ethnicity a senior official in Western Equatoria state after soldiers loyal to the administration under president Salva Kiir came under fire from alleged attack by rebel forces on Thursday.
John Cleopa, executive director of Mundri West county, was shot dead on Friday while accompanying the county commissioner to a spot where two SPLA soldiers were killed and several others wounded on Thursday night.
Opposition forces led by former vice-president, Riek Machar, claimed the SPLA forces fell into ambush they laid while trying to reinforce their troops in Mundri which allegedly came under the control of the rebels later on Friday.
But Western Equatoria state officials described attackers as unknown gunmen and admitted that incidents of fighting were taking place around Mundri.
However, they blamed the death of one of their officials on their own army (SPLA) which they accused of assassinating the county executive director.
“Who says John [Cleopa] was killed by people not known? This is a bad politics and it will backfire. Our people know the truth. I was there when John was killed. I accompanied him to the scene after hearing that some SPLA forces came under fire and that two soldiers were killed.”
“He was talking on the telephone when one of the soldiers who complained why the local authorities did not intervene left the scene and in the matter of one minute, he opened fire on John. He did not kill other people. This was a clear assassination because of his ethnicity,” an official who claimed to have accompanied the former executive director for Mundri West county told Sudan Tribune on Saturday.
He said he, John and county commissioner were visiting the area as county authorities to investigate what happened and how it happened. It however seemed the soldiers were frustrated because no local fighters from the area came to their rescue when they were under attack.
“When we got the information, John then decided to call authorities in Yambio and in Juba to provide information about the incident so that he could hear from them how to go about it. He talked to some members of parliament in Juba and in Yambio,” he further explained.
But Mundri West county commissioner, Hassan Bakheit, told Sudan Tribune on Saturday that the official was killed by unidentified gunmen from a distance.
“I did not see the people. It just happened that some people opened fire from a distance and the bullets hit John. I was driven away and until now we are not able to identify the people who shot him. It was a random shooting coming from different directions. So it is difficult to say who opened fire,” Bakheit said.
He denied that the town had fallen under the control of the opposition forces operating in the area, saying a reinforcement by the South Sudanese army from Maridi restored the situation in Mundri town.
“I am speaking to you from Mundri town. The situation today is calm and under control. The SPLA forces have come from Maridi and we are working with them and the police and other security forces to restore law and order,” said the returning commissioner.
He called on civilians who fled the town on Friday to come back, saying the situation went back to normalcy.
The top county official did not deny or confirm the presence of the armed opposition in the area, although he denied that the town was under their control.
South Sudan rebels said they captured Mundri town on Friday, adding that the county executive director was occidentally killed while trying to escape from the town. They also claimed to have dispersed an SPLA reinforcement coming from Lakes state.
Rebel sources told Sudan Tribune that their forces began to evacuate vulnerable groups from Mundri town on Saturday in anticipation of government's attack to recapture the town. It was not however clear whether their forces who allegedly captured the town also withdrew.
The operation that captured Mundri, they claimed, was led by Colonel Wesley Welebe and under the overall command of Major General Elias Lako Jada.
Mundri is some 200km west of the country's capital, Juba. A significant presence of the rebels in the area would pose threat to the national capital.
(ST)
May 22, 2015 (WAU) – A team of 12 Egyptian doctors are in South Sudan's Western Bahr el Ghazal state to conduct multiple operations for a week.
The doctors, led by Dr. Hisham Labib, are in the Western Bahr el Ghazal capital, Wau to conduct operations, targeting 600 patients.
“This is a part of the cooperation between the Egypt government and the government of south Sudan in health sector,” said Labib.
“Our services are open to every citizen in the state starting from tomorrow [Saturday] up to the 28th of this month,” he added.
The North African country was one of the first nations to recognise South Sudan's independence when it seceded from Sudan in 2011.
In February, the Egyptian government earmarked $2 billion for the construction of a multi-purpose hydro electricity power project on Jur River in Western Bahr el Ghazal.
(ST)
May 23, 2015 (KHARTOUM) – The Sudanese president Omer Hassan al-Bashir will fly to Doha on Sunday for talks with the Emir of Qatar Sheikh Tamim Bin Hamad al-Thani.
Qatar news agency (QNA) said the two leaders will discuss bilateral ties but did not say how long the visit will last.
Senior diplomatic sources told Sudan Tribune that the crisis in Yemen will Syria will be part of the discussions.
They noted Sudan's participation in the Saudi-led military campaign in Yemen against Iran-backed Houthi rebels and Bashir's recent assertions that Syrian president Bashar al-Assad need to be part of the political solution.
Bashir could also renew his invitation to the Qatari Emir to participate in his swearing-in ceremony scheduled June 2nd, the sources said.
The Sudanese leader today returned home from a previously unannounced trip to Saudi Arabia in which he met with King Salman Bin Abdel-Aziz and other senior officials.
He also held talks with Yemeni president Abd-Rabbuh Mansur Hadi who has resided in Riyadh shortly before the military campaign started in March.
Today, Bashir phoned King Salman to condemn the suicide bombing that targeted a Shiite mosque in East Saudi Arabia province of Qatif. He conveyed his condolences and that of the Sudanese people over the victims.
The Saudi monarch expressed his gratitude to Bashir for his phone call.
Sudan's foreign ministry issued a separate statement saying that Khartoum would continue to support the security of Saudi Arabia and expressed confidence in the ability of Riyadh's security bodies to nab the perpetrators and bringing them to justice.
The relations between two countries appear to have warmed up after years of tense relations. Hours after Bashir's visit to Riyadh last March, it was announced that Sudan has joined the military coalition in Yemen.
Khartoum's close ties with Tehran was the main cause of cool relations with Riyadh. Last year, Sudan closed Iranian cultural centers in the country which was seen as a gesture of goodwill towards Arab Gulf states.
Sudanese officials have expressed strong hope that Saudi Arabia and other Arab Gulf states would generously reward Khartoum for shifting alliances away from Iran.
But a Gulf diplomat speaking to Reuters last month downplayed these hopes.
"There is no trust in the Gulf for Omer al-Bashir...The leaders in the Gulf think that Bashir can betray them at any time, so they won't give him aid until he shows he is serious about joining them and leaving Iran," the diplomat said.
In April, the Saudi ambassador in Sudan denied local media reports that his country provided any cash assistance to Khartoum.
(ST)
May 23, 2015 (KHARTOUM) – The Sudanese government said that it aborted a move by the European states within the United Nations Commission on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice (Crime Commission) to give the International Criminal Court (ICC) jurisdiction over crimes against women and children.
In its 24th session concluded on Friday, the Crime Commission passed nine resolutions including one on the UN standard minimum rules for the treatment of prisoners (known as the "Mandela rules").
The commission brought together as many as 1,000 delegates from member states, non-governmental organizations and civil society, including several high-level speakers.
Several participants from poor nations in South America, Africa and Asia, stressed importance of the punitive measures included in the Mandela rules but voiced reservation over lack of necessary financial capabilities to build prisons.
The UN for its part vowed to provide financial assistance to enable those countries to apply the rules in the future.
Sudan's permanent representative before UN agencies, Mohamed Zaroug, said his country already applies those rules.
He pointed that his country, in coordination with several non-member states of the ICC, managed to prevent attempts by the European countries to consider the crime against women and children a war crime and give the ICC jurisdiction over it.
Zaroug told the Turkish news agency Andolu Saturday that violence against women is usually committed under normal conditions and not necessarily linked to wars, noting that ICC non-member states could not be forced to become parties to the Rome statute.
According to western diplomats the European bloc withdrew their request in order to avoid a vote that could lead to its rejection by at the plenary session of the commission.
The Mandela rules include extensive revisions and additions to the UN's Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners‚ which date back to 1955.
They contain an expanded section of basic principles‚ including the absolute prohibition of torture and other cruel‚ inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment.
The rules also provides clear and detailed instructions on issues such as cell and body searches‚ registration and record keeping‚ investigations into deaths and complaints of torture and other ill-treatment‚ the needs of specific groups‚ independent inspections of prisons‚ the right to legal representation and more.
Resolutions of the Crime Commission are expected to be adopted by the UN General Assembly during its 70th regular session in September.
(ST)
May 23, 2015 (ADDIS ABABA) – Spokesman for the opposition leader, Riek Machar, said a video clip played on South Sudan TV (SSTV) on Thursday which alleged recorded defeat of the rebels in Melut town, near Paloch oilfields in Upper Nile state, was misleading.
“A video clip played on SSTV alleging recorded defeat of our forces in Melut town by pro-Salva Kiir's soldiers is laughable. It was misleading,” said Machar's spokesman, James Gatdet Dak.
Dak told Sudan Tribune on Saturday that the video clip was shot on Tuesday, 19 May the day the rebel forces captured the town, challenging how the government could claim that it defeated their forces on the same day.
The government-run SSTV on Thursday played a programme produced by Brigadier General Malaak Ayuen, the director of information and public relations in the headquarters of the South Sudanese army, which claimed how their troops forced out the rebel troops from Melut town two days after the rebels captured the town.
It showed a long convoy of soldiers arriving on Toyota pick-ups while others were shooting as they walked. The video clip also showed a burning town and ferry destroyed in the river mounted with heavy weapons.
Ayuen who was introducing what was being shown in the live pictures with songs of victory in the background said it was the fighting that flushed out the rebel forces from the area.
However Dak said watching the video clip it was clear that it was shot either before they attacked Melut or after their forces already withdrew from the town, saying the government was trying to appear as if they forcefully flushed out their forces from the town.
The rebel leader's spokesperson said their forces were not defeated but orderly withdrew after taking away all the arsenal the government stored in the town, explaining that government forces returned after learning that the town was empty.
He also said watching and examining the video clip carefully one would easily detect that there was no exchange of fire.
“They think they can deceive every citizen in South Sudan, which is not true. If you watch the video clip you will notice that there was no exchange of fire. Only the government forces were shooting in a very relaxed manner,” he said.
“Some were even shown sitting on the ground and chatting while others were randomly shooting bullets in a certain direction. There was no intensity in the shootings. It was random shooting.”
He further said even the video shots were taken in a seemingly calm environment in which the camera person was not disturbed.
Dak said the date on which the purported video was shot indicated it was 19 May on Tuesday the day the town was captured by the rebels, saying government “propagandists” should explain whether they wrongly set the date in the camera or they were recording their on defeat on that day.
The video named ‘The battle of Melut by SPLA' can be accessed by following this link on youtube. .
(ST)