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August 30, 2021 (JUBA) - South Sudanese authorities have temporarily blocked access to social media services across the country as part of security measures to abort calls for protests for peaceful regime change in the country scheduled for August 30, 2021.

Leaders of the civil society groups organizing for the mass protest say the plan has not changed but have decided to carry out more consultations with some top security officers, army generals and police services to provide protection to protesters and to ensure people with different agendas and interests do not take advantage to destroy properties and cause havoc and harms.

“The plan has not changed. It is still on course. People will go out, but we have just told them to wait for guidance from the central committee”, a leading activist told the Sudan Tribune on Monday.

Online services have experienced restriction on Saturday after the government ordered telecom companies to block access to social media platforms as a part of measures to curtail mass mobilization for protests through social media platforms.

Nonetheless, activists continued to reach the social media platforms via Virtual Private Networks (VPN).

Activists say the blockage of social media services, shut down of a radio station in Jonglei and arrest of a bishop in Yei County in Central Equatoria motivate their mobilization to protest for freedoms.

A police spokesman has denied any link between the arrest of a bishop, the closure of a radio station in Jonglei and calls for general protests in the country.

On Sunday, Information Minister Michael Makuei Lueth warned the public from taking part in the planned "illegal" protests on Monday.

Makuei further urged South Sudanese to support the implementation of the Revitalized Peace Agreement and the government efforts to move the country forward.

The official Government spokesperson, also, directed the civil service personnel and the public at large to resume their normal duties as usual.

The leaders of the civil rights activists are asking people to take to the street and protest the inability of the government to curb corruption, stop recurring communal fights, and ensuring freedom of expression.

Continued intimidation and arrest of activists, journalists, and political opponents are clear and obvious lack of political will to enforce the key provisions of the 2018 revitalized peace agreement, they say.

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August 29, 2021 (KHARTOUM) - Sudan and Chad Sunday discussed ways to increase joint cooperation to address the security challenges facing the two counties particularly the armed groups in Libya.

Mohamat Idriss Deby Chairman of the Transitional Military Council (CMT) in Chad arrived in Khartoum on a two-day visit. He met with the Head of the Transitional Sovereign Council Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and Prime Minister Abdallah Hamdok.

Also, Deby held a closed-door meeting with al-Burhan, followed by another meeting involving the Sudanese defence and interior ministers and the directors of general and military intelligence agencies.

The Chadian delegation included the foreign minister, minister of public security, chairman of the joint chiefs of staff, director of the security agency and AbdelKerim Idriss Deby, Deputy Director of the President's Civil Office.

In a statement released on Sunday evening, the Chadian presidency said that the interim Chadian leader called to deepen the security cooperation based on the signed bilateral and regional agreements.

Deby called for "reciprocal solidarity" between the two countries to face security challenges posed by "the presence in southern Libya of the hordes of mercenaries that might carry out new attacks such as Chad has already experienced," said the presidency.

The statement further stressed that these mercenaries who are "recruited, trained, supervised, armed and financed by foreign powers (...) must not be allowed to leave Libya because they pose a serious threat to the stability and security of both Chad and Sudan".

It was purported that the Russian Wanger militia group trained the Chadian rebel groups in Libya who sought to take power in Chad last April.

The Libyan warring parties hired rebel groups from Chad and Sudan to fight along with their forces. The civil war in the northern African country provided them with an opportunity to survive and rebuild their structures.

The Sudanese presidency said al-Burhan recalled the "great joint security operations" and called to develop it.

He further called on extend this cooperation to the economic sector and supporting social coexistence before underscoring that "there are many cooperation agreements between the two countries that must be activated for the benefit of the people."

When the rebels carried out their attack, Sudan deployed troops on the border areas to prevent them from controlling areas in far eastern Chad near Sudan. The attackers were forced to return to southern Libya.

Musa al-Koni Vice-President of the Libyan Presidential Council visited this week Khartoum and Ndjamena where he agreed with the Sudanese and Chadian leaders to activate a joint security agreement involving Niger.

In his meeting with Hamdok, Deby discussed economic cooperation between the two countries.

Also, the Sudanese Foreign Minister Mariam al-Mahdi discussed with her Chadian counterpart bilateral relations and the need to include neighbouring countries in the international meetings to bring stability in Libya.

(ST)

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August 28, 2021 (JUBA) - Some twenty people are killed and over 20,000 displaced following the intercommunal fighting in Western Equatoria state, according to a statement released by the National Salvation Front (NAS).

Since last July armed clashes have erupted in Tombura County between the Azande and Balanda ethnic groups.

The UN Mission in South Sudan UNMISS deployed patrols to protect civilians but the violence continued in the area.

In a statement extended t the Sudan Tribune the non-signatory NAS said the clashes affected several areas including Yubu, Akpa, Mabenge, Kpatanyayo among others.

"Over twenty Thousand (20,000) people were displaced, and about twenty people killed (20)," said the statement before mentioning the murder of the former Commissioner of Tombura County, Babiro Charles Gbamsi who was killed in his house on 24 August.

NAS which gathers fighters from the two ethnic groups called on the two sides to stop violence adding that the rift will only profit to the "conflict entrepreneurs" in Juba.

The statement further accused the government of President Salva Kiir of encouraging the hostilities the intercommunal fighting.

In return, it hailed the efforts of the religious communities to promote the peaceful resolution of the conflict and UNMISS for providing humanitarian assistance to the affected civilians.

The non-signatory group called on the International Community especially the AU, UN and TROIKA to press the government in Juba not to instigate conflicts among the communities of South Sudan.

On 12 August, UNMISS estimated that over 30,000 people have been displaced and some 500 households are camping in a church compound in Mupoi Payam.

(ST)

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August 28, 2021 (KHARTOUM) - Sudan has called for dialogue between Algeria and Morocco to resolve their difference and to reestablish bilateral ties.

On 24 August, Algeria cut diplomatic relations with Morocco, citing "hostile actions", but Morrocc rejected the "fallacious allegations".

The Sudanese foreign ministry said deeply concerned about the recent developments between the "brothers" in two northern Africa countries.

"Sudan calls on the two parties to reach a friendly and positive settlement and to turn this crisis into a real opportunity for solidarity and cooperation to achieve common interests," reads a statement released by the ministry.

Bilateral relations between the neighbour have been strained for decades due to the Western Sahara issue.

Also, Algerian Foreign Minister Ramdane Lamamra accused Morocco of using Pegasus Israeli spyware against its officials. Also, he accused Morocco of supporting a separatist group in the Kabylia region.

The Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), the Arab League, Saudi Arabia, Jordan and Egypt in separate statements called for "dialogue" between the two neighbouring countries.

In the same trend, the United Nations Secretary-General encouraged the two Algeria and Morocco to find "a way forward to mend relations". Also, France attached to "to deepening ties and dialogue between nations of the region to consolidate stability and prosperity".

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August 28, 2021 (KHARTOUM) Prime Minister Abdallah Hamdok and the Sudanese Communist Party (SCP) Saturday pursued dialogue on ways to implement the goals of the December Revolution and reuniting the Forces for Freedom and Change (FFC) that toppled the former regime.

Last June, Hamdok launched a call to reunite the revolution's political forces and armed groups in order to implement its slogans for freedom, peace, and justice. Except for the SCP and an armed group led by Minni Minnawi, the FFC groups positively responded to his call.

Further, he held a first meeting with the Communists on 12 August to discuss the contentious issues and criticism of the government programmes including the IMF-supported economic reforms.

In a statement issued after his second meeting on Saturday, Hamdok cabinet said that the two sides reviewed the issues related to the cooperation with the International Criminal Court (ICC), trade unions law, security situation and IDPs in Darfur, census and preparation for general elections, landownership and foreign investments and legal reforms.

"On the ICC, the meeting agreed to hand over the wanted persons to the Court, and to implement the decision of the Council of Ministers in this respect," said the cabinet.

On Darfur, the meeting agreed on the importance to address the security situation and improve the situation of the displaced persons.

The parties also convened that a population census should be carried before the general elections taking into account the demographic changes that resulted from the war.

The Sudanese communists withdrew from the FFC in November 2020 and called to bring down Hamdok's government in April 2021.

The left party did not want to bear the responsibility of the unpopular economic reforms. Also, the communists voiced their opposition to the Juba process for peace it excluded the FFC forces and gave a big role to the armed components.

The government did not develop a plan to address the roots of the problem (in Darfur)," said Siddiq Youssif a leading figure of the party, "Rather it focused on reaching an agreement with the armed groups based on the power and wealth sharing," he stressed.

The prime minister informed the PSC leaders about his decision to form a ministerial committee to review the trade unions law contested by the communists.

The law had been already discussed during the first meeting.

The two sides also discussed the civil service and agreed to avoid the politicization of jobs and.

Regarding land ownership and foreign investments, the two sides agreed to preserve the rights of landowners.

Hamdok "affirmed Sudan's welcome to foreign investments that serve the national interests of the Sudanese people".

Recently the government intervened to cancel a decision by the Northern State taken last April to confiscate an agricultural area of over 40,000 hectares allocated to Bahrain in 2014 by the former regime.

The state government at the time said the land had not been developed by the Gulf state.

From Hamdok office, the meeting was attended by his political adviser Yasir Arman, media adviser Faisal Mohamed Saleh and le cabinet executive director Adam Hiraika.

(ST)

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August 27, 2021 (JUBA)- The U.S. Embassy in Juba issued an alert on Friday to the Americans in South Sudan, warning them to keep a low profile during protests planned on Monday 30 August.

Civil society groups called for peaceful but unauthorized protests across the country to protest violence, mismanagement and corruption in the country by the ruling elite.

"The demonstrations are not approved by the host government. All citizens should exercise caution and be aware of their surroundings, particularly around large crowds, or gatherings,” cautioned the statement.

The embassy further underscored that the planned peaceful protest could turn confrontational and possibly escalate into violence with little or no warning.

The statement reminded U.S. citizens that the travel advisory for South Sudan remains at Level 4 due to crime, kidnapping, and armed conflict.

“Do Not Travel due to COVID-19, crime, kidnapping, and armed conflict. The U.S. government's ability to provide emergency consular services to U.S. citizens in South Sudan is extremely limited. U.S. government personnel in South Sudan are under a strict curfew that limits movements to daylight hours,” emphasized the embassy.

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