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May 26, 2015 (JUBA) - South Sudanese government has renewed accusations against neighbouring Sudan of allegedly providing military support to a new rebellion in Western Equatoria state.

Arrow Boys seen here in May 2010, patrol a village in south Sudan in an attempt to defend themselves from attacks LRA rebels (AFP)

Spokesperson of the South Sudanese army (SPLA), Colonel Philip Aguer, announced on Monday that a new rebel movement had been formed in Western Equatoria state with weapons provided by the Sudanese government.

“They are using new weapons. They are automatic rifle kalashnikov. Our forces in Mundri have discovered new AK47 that you can fold. They are using the machine guns called 42 that are being used now by Sudan Armed Forces,” Aguer claimed.

The new group, he said, was being led by a former member of parliament, Wesley Weluba, who lost election in 2010.

“The security information we have is that somebody called Charles Balogore under the command of Wesley Waluba is the one causing this insecurity in the area. Wesley was a former member of parliament of Western Equatoria but lost election in 2010 and formed a rebellion to chase away the cattle camps from Western Equatoria,” Aguer further explained.

He further explained that when Wesley succeeded with the chasing of cattle camps from the area particularly towards Lakes state, he and his group decided to turn against the government. The army and the security, he added, were working together in investigating the size of the new rebellion.

He was making the official response on recent military developments in Mundri West county, Western Equatoria state, where government soldiers came under attack resulting in the initial killing of at least two soldiers and later the county executive director, John Cleopa.

The group also captured Mundri town, which is the administrative headquarters in Mundri West county until more army and police reinforcement dislodged them from the town on Saturday.

Opposition faction led by former vice president, Riek Machar, said the new group was allied to them under the operational command of Colonel Wesley Weluba, and under the overall command of Major General Elias Laku Jada.

(ST)

May 26, 2015 (PARIS) - The Justice and Equality Movement (JEM) leader, Gibril Ibrahim, disclosed that the opposition “Sudan Call” forces would meet within the upcoming weeks to develop a common action strategy.

Gibril Ibrahim (AFP)

Ibrahim told Sudan Tribune that peace moves were disrupted following Khartoum's refusal to participate in the pre-dialogue meeting which was called by the African mediation. This refusal strengthened the sense that the government is not serious to achieve peaceful solution, he added.

Sudan's ruling National Congress Party (NCP) refused to attend a meeting in Addis Ababa last March to discuss issues pertaining to the national dialogue process and its procedures.

Khartoum at the time said the African Union High-Level Implementation Panel (AUHIP) mediation team did not coordinate with the government on who would participate in the meeting. It further said that it would be held at the wrong time given the elections which took place in April.

Gibril said the “Sudan Call” forces would meet within two weeks to discuss the next step, stressing “the meeting would determine the new position towards the dialogue besides unification of opposition forces”.

“We hope the meeting could be held during the coming two weeks. It may be held between 11 to 12 June in one of the European capitals,'' he further said.

In a letter sent on 3 April to the African Union Peace and Security Council (AUPSC) and the AUHIP, National Umma Party (NUP) president Sadiq al-Mahdi and chairman of Sudanese Revolutionary Forces (SRF) Malik Agar said concerned by the government's lack of political will and called to establish a new peace process.

They proposed to create a single negotiating track for the peace process replacing the two track one process approach adopted by the AUPSC last September.

“Sudan Call” forces, including the SRF, NUP and the NCF, would participate in a hearing session about Sudan at the European Parliament in the French city of Strasbourg on 9 June.

Also, several opposition leaders are also expected to take part in an annual meeting about Sudan to be held in Hermansburg, Germany, after the hearing.

JEM leader pointed to the need for developing a unified opposition stance towards the regime, arguing that would enable the African mediation in its discussions with the government and allow it to furnish the regional and international partners with the opposition's vision on dialogue.

“We [the opposition] were asked to provide a clear position and that is what we seek to submit to the African mediation, the European Union, the Troika countries and the rest of the concerned bodies,” he added.

SERIOUS DIALOGUE

Gibril called on the government to take into account the large popular boycott of the recent elections and to engage in a serious dialogue. He further said the opposition would positively respond to such approach towards dialogue.

“If the [government] is serious about reaching genuine solutions to save the country, the opposition will not turn it away,” he said.

But he warned that dialogue wouldn't be productive unless it leads to “a structural change in the system of government”.

JEM leader acknowledged existence of differences among opposition forces about how to deal with the regime, saying “we don't claim the opposition forces work in full harmony”.

“Some [opposition forces] refuse to engage in dialogue with Khartoum and in fact the latter's [stances] make them stick to their refusal because each time it (the government) demonstrates lack of seriousness towards achieving peace,” he added.

He stressed the need for the opposition to be ready to change the regime or to engage in dialogue with it if it shows seriousness, underscoring they must be open to all options.

It should be recalled that the rebel Sudan Liberation Movement - Abdel Wahid al-Nur (SLM-AW) refuses to engage in dialogue with the regime until several conditions were met including disarmament of government militias and provision of security for civilians.

Also, the opposition alliance of the National Consensus Front (NCF) refuses to engage in the dialogue until the requirements of a conducive environment are met.

However, they agreed to take part in the pre-dialogue meeting, on the condition that the national election will be postponed, all political detainees are released, and the NCP agrees on the establishment of a national transitional government.

(ST)

May 26, 2015 (JUBA) - South Sudanese parliament on Tuesday summoned the minister of defense Kuol Manyang Juuk along with the minister of interior and minister of national security in the office of the president over the new rebellion in Western Equatoria state.

South Sudanese MPs stand during a parliamentary session in Juba on August 31, 2011 (AFP)

The three officials, according to the deputy speaker of the national legislative assembly, Mark Nyipuoc, are expected to appear before the house on Monday next week to provide explanation about the recent military developments in Mundri West county in Western Equatoria state.

Spokesperson of the South Sudanese army (SPLA), Colonel Philip Aguer, on Monday revealed formation of a new rebel group in the state of Western Equatoria, apparently in an attempt to justify the deployment of the government troops in the area after reports quoting the opposition fighters claimed to have carried out the attacks on government soldiers in the area.

He said the armed youth who previously organized themselves to chase out pastoralists from the state turned into rebel forces targeting the government.

But Western Equatoria state information minister Charles Barnaba Kisanga denied in a statement on Tuesday there was rebellion in the area as the army announced.

He said that the circumstances under which the county's executive director, John Cleopa, was killed could not be blamed on the rebels because he was in entourage of commissioner with security forces all around when they were inspecting the scene of the night attack on the group of SPLA.

“It seemed one member from the security forces moved a bit aside and opened fire killing the executive director and fire was also directed at the commissioner Hassan Bhakeit, who had to duck escape the bullets and even his car was later hit,” he said.

He inquired how shooting could be directed by rebels at only civilians in the group when army and police were all around them. Earlier, some state officials blamed the killing of Cleopa on government soldiers.

Armed youth commanded by Colonel Wesley Weluba stormed and captured Mundri town on Friday but government sent reinforcement on Saturday and captured it.

The parliament summoned the security officials to explain what transpired in the state which led to the death of officials and capture of the county headquarters.

(ST)

Saarbrücker Zeitung: Saarbrücken/Berlin (ots) - Schwerbehinderte Menschen sind nach einem Bericht der "Saarbrücker Zeitung" (Mittwoch) trotz anhaltend guter Konjunktur besonders stark von Langzeitarbeitslosigkeit und staatlicher Grundsicherung betroffen. Entgegen dem ...

Az Európai Parlament gazdasági és pénzügyi bizottsága kedden egyetlen szavazattal elutasította az uniós bankszektor szerkezeti reformjáról szóló jogszabálytervezetről készült jelentést. A képviselők elé került szöveg tovább puhította volna a rendszerszintű bankok funkcionális szétválasztására irányuló bizottsági javaslatot.

An Aga Khan health center in Afghanistan.

By Hussein Rashid

The recent attack against Ismaili Muslims in Karachi, Pakistan, will be read by most as part of a simple narrative of an ongoing Sunni-Shi’ah conflict. Unfortunately, as consistent fear-mongering has demonstrated with Sharia, bandying about non-English words conveys a facade of knowledge without any guarantee of any actual understanding. As is the case with most political violence, here is more to this attack than a simple retelling of a religious clash. There is a deeper history that is masked by using inappropriate vocabulary, and misusing it is allowing the most extreme voices to set the agenda.

Contrary to popular opinion, history shows that there is not a 1,400-year old conflict between Sunni and Shi’ah. Instead, we need to understand the violence in Pakistan as having a strong political rationale. To miss what this attack was about allows slogans about Islam to triumph over real knowledge of the religion and region, dishonors the victims of terrorism and ultimately weakens U.S. national security.

The Ismaili community is a small Shi’ah community that is different from the Ithna’ashari, or Twelver, Shi’ah community that dominates in Iraq and Iran. It is the only Shi’ah community to have a present, living Imam, (a divinely appointed successor to Prophet Muhammad) in the Aga Khan.
The office of the Shi’ah Imam, not to be confused with the Sunni imam, or prayer leader, represents one of the greatest threats to movements like Daesh, otherwise known as the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS). Daesh has a nihilist vision of an Islam that can only destroy, not construct, and their use of grandiose titles like “Islamic State” and “caliph” are flailing attempts to show they can build, not just kill. Shi’ah communities, like Sufi orders, offer an alternative authority structure and vision of what it means to be Muslim to the nihilists. There are important theological differences, and these are manifest in the histories that are told and the actions that communities take.

The key is that as long as Shi’ah and Sufi groups exist, with their structures, hierarchies, and well-established means of interacting with the outside world, nihilists cannot claim to be the sole and logical representation of “Islam” in the world. The Aga Khan, for example, established one of the largest hospital networks in Pakistan, a constructive and ethical engagement with the faith. This story is less often told in the media when juxtaposed against ISIS’ atrocities.

Even a week after the attacks in Pakistan, we still do not know who is responsible for them. There are many groups who want to claim credit for these attacks because these nihilist groups offer nothing but death, and they reap political benefits if they can say they are the most destructive. They are operationally interchangeable and can only compete in the realm of body counts. They benefit when we describe Muslim communities as “sects” because that implies a true Islam to which they can lay claim. This naming is not part of the Muslim tradition — it only gives the nihilists legitimacy.

All of these groups are the spawn of the Wahhabi movement. This movement, which originated in the 18th century, and eventually rose to power by allying with the British Empire to kill rival Muslims, cannot be considered Sunni. It represents an innovation, creating a new community of interpretation.

The terrorist attack that killed 47 Muslims, many women and children, continues to demonstrate the depravity of nihilist groups. However, to read it as part of an ongoing conflict rooted in theology makes too easy an analogy between Christianity and Islam and misses the deeper lessons. We need to move beyond simple labels of Sunni and Shi’ah, and not give the most depraved elements of a society and opportunity to claim legitimacy for themselves.

Hussein Rashid is a professor of religion at Hofstra University, a term member at the Council on Foreign Relations and a Fellow with the Truman National Security Project. He works at the intersection of religion, art and national identity. Views expressed are his own.

The tenuous situation in eastern Ukraine continues to be marked by sporadic fighting and a crippling humanitarian crisis forcing many civilians to seek refuge in underground shelters or in neighbouring countries, the United Nations relief arm confirmed today.

Aiming to target 5.7 million children under the age of five, the United Nations today launched a mass polio vaccination campaign in Iraq, which is set to be conducted in all governorates to maintain the country's polio-free status.

After a year in office, Modi’s gestures of conciliation toward Islamabad have gone nowhere. That’s because India’s founding fathers set Pakistan up to fail.

Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has requested that his Special Envoy to Yemen, Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed, postpone the planned consultations aimed at seeking a peaceful and Yemeni-led political transition process in the country, according to a United Nations spokesperson.

Le président Hery Rajaonarimanpianina est notamment accusé de non-respect de la Constitution.

Gerard Araud, the French ambassador the United States, says an emerging nuclear deal with Iran will impose tough restrictions on the Islamic Republic and improve regional security across the Middle East. But on Tuesday, Araud acknowledged that it could also pose a potential risk: spurring an array Arab countries to develop their own civilian nuclear programs.

ALAKHBAR (Nouakchott)-La Procureure de la Cour pénale internationale (CPI) a été reçue ce mardi par le président mauritanien Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz.

Elkezdődött kedden  a harmadik gyermek- és ifjúsági színházi találkozó a Csíki Játékszínnél.
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