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Recent Appearances...

Africa Horn

Reported fighting in Sudan's Darfur mars fragile truce, fmr. Gen. Omar al-Bashir moved to army hospital

2023-04-28

Hudna! Hudna! Hudna!!

[An Nahar] Fighting intensified in Sudan's war-ravaged province of Darfur during a fragile three-day truce between the country's battling top generals, killing an estimated dozens of people, residents said Thursday.

The truce eased fighting in the country's capital, creating a lull that allowed foreign governments to evacuate thousands of their nationals. Tens of thousands of Sudanese traveled to their country's land borders with Egypt, Chad and Æthiopia, and to a port city on the country's Red Sea.

The new festivities targeted civilians in the capital city of Genena, the residents said, an area that is regularly roiled by outbursts of brutal tribal violence. They described attacks by fighters, mostly wearing the uniforms of the country's powerful paramilitary, on several neighborhoods across the city early Thursday, forcing many families to leave their homes.

"The attacks come from all directions," said Amany, a Genena resident who asked to withhold her family name for her safety. "All are fleeing."

Much attention has been centered on the capital's intense fighting, including ~~Arclight~~ airstrike
<del>Arclight</del> airstrike

...KABOOM!...
s and artillery and dronezaps, since the country's military and its powerful paramilitary known as the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) started battling for key government institutions and military bases on April 15.

The fighting in the capital has created dire conditions for many struggling to obtain food and water, and electricity is cut off across much of the capital and other cities. Multiple aid agencies have had to suspend operations, a heavy blow in a country where a third of the population of 46 million relies on humanitarian assistance.

But there are now more indications that other remote provinces are witnessing deadly violence.

Fighting in Genena first escalated earlier this week. Residents reported widespread looting and destruction of government offices and aid agencies' compounds in the city including U.N. premises and the headquarters of the Sudanese Red Islamic Thingy.

Adam Haroun, a political self-proclaimed genius in West Darfur, said dozens of people were killed over the past two days in Genena. He said the fighting "with light and heavy weapons" has already turned into tribal violence.

Speaking over the phone from Genena's western neighborhood of Gamarek, Haroun said tribal fighters were roaming the streets, destroying and looting "whatever they found." He said Genena's main open market was completely destroyed.

"The battles are raging right now," he said over the phone, the sound of gunfire overtaking his voice at times. "It's scorched-earth war."

Volker Perthes, the U.N. envoy for Sudan, said late Wednesday that the Genena festivities have been centered on civilians and run the risk of kicking off a dangerous cycle of violence between rival tribes.

Sudan: Omar Al-Bashir moved to military hospital

Not lost or escaped after all.

[Garowe] Deposed Sudanese leader Omar al-Bashir

...Former President-for-Life of Sudan He came to power in 1989 when he, as a brigadier in the Sudanese army, led a group of officers in a bloodless military coup that ousted the government of Prime Minister Sadiq al-Mahdi and eventually appointed himself head cheese. He fell out with his Islamic mentor, Hasan al-Turabi, tried to impose shariah on the Christian and animist south, resulting in its secessesion, and attempted to Arabize Darfur by unleashing the barbaric Janjaweed on it. Sudan's potential prosperity has been pissed away in warfare that has left as many as 400,000 people dead and 2.5 million displaced. Hee was overthrown by popular consent in 2019. Omar has been indicted for genocide by the International Criminal Court but nothing is expected to come of it...
was moved to an army hospital after heavy fighting broke out leading to a jailbreak last week, military officials said, amid speculations that the former strongman managed to escape from prison during the unprecedented melee.

Fighting broke out between the Sudan Armed Forces [SAF] and the paramilitary wing Rapid Support Forces [RSF] with both claiming to be interested in restoring civilian rule in the country. It is during the battles that a number of inmates managed to escape, leading to speculations about the whereabouts of the former leader.

In a statement, the army said that al-Bashir and 30 other prisoners were moved to Aliyaa Hospital which handles patients in the forces, abruptly ending his stay at Kober prison in Bahri in northern Khartoum where he was being held with several other former government officials.

"Former President Bashir’s family members said they are waiting for the fighting to end so he can go to trial and prove his innocence," said Al Jazeera’s Hiba Morgan, reporting from Khartoum.

The release of about 25,000 convicted criminals added to a growing sense of lawlessness in Khartoum, where residents have reported worsening insecurity with widespread looting and gangs roaming the streets.

Goobjoog News adds:

A number of Sudanese Islamist hardliners have beat feet from Kober prison in Khartoum, local media reports.

Among those who escaped are Ahmed Harun, a former official in the ousted regime of Omar Al-Bashir who reported that he had managed to escape from the correctional facility along with a number of other Islamist hardliners, including Ali Osman Taha, Awad El Jaz, and Nafi Ali Nafi.

Harun, who is wanted by the International Criminal Court (ICC) in the Hauge was however quoted by the Tayba Satellite TV station saying that he and other former government officials who had escaped will be ready to defend themselves before a judge.

He added that they decided to flee the prison to escape heavy bombardment and repeated power and water outage in the facility since fighting between the Sudan Armed Forces (SAF) and the Raid Support Forces (RSF) broke out on April 15th.

However,
a hangover is the wrath of grapes...
the RSF has accused the Sudanese Army of being behind the release of the former government officials from prison.

Link

Africa North

Pres. of Sudan To Run For Re-Election

2014-10-22

[IsraelTimes] Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir

International Criminal Court
... where Milosevich died of old age before being convicted ...
(ICC), was re-elected as both leader and presidential candidate of the NCP at a party convention, said his chief assistant, Ibrahim Ghandour.

The 70-year-old career soldier took power in an Islamist-backed coup, and there had been doubts about whether he would run again in the controversial election, slated for April.

In a March interview, Ghandour said Bashir "declared many times that he's not willing to" stand again but that the final decision was with the party.

Two knee operations over the summer also raised worries over his health.

But Bashir's name was put on the party's shortlist of five candidates and his tally in Tuesday's vote was enough to rule out further voting, Ghandour said.

The president garnered 266 out of the 396 votes cast, Ghandour said, with the remainder of the 522 advisory council members choosing not to take part.

The other four nominees were all senior NCP officials seen as close to Bashir: Ghandour himself, senior member Nafie Ali Nafie, ex-vice president Ali Osman Taha and First Vice President Bakri Hassan Saleh.

Calls for 'transitional' government
The 2015 elections for the presidency, national and state parliaments will be only the second since the 1989 coup, and opposition parties have expressed concern
...meaning the brow was mildly wrinkled, the eyebrows drawn slightly together, and a thoughtful expression assumed, not that anything was actually done or indeed that any thought was actually expended...
s over them.

They have said the elections must come under the national dialogue announced by Bashir in January to try to resolve Sudan's multiple crises.

Reform Now, a leading opposition party, called in August for a transitional administration to be put in place as part of the dialogue and a discussion about the 2015 ballot.

Bashir is wanted by the ICC on charges of genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes in the Darfur region of western Sudan.

At least 300,000 people have been killed in Darfur and two million forced to flee their homes since non-Arab rebels first rose up against the Arab-dominated Khartoum regime in 2003, the United Nations
...a formerly good idea gone bad...
says.

The government puts the corpse count at 10,000.

Rebels are also currently battling the government in the South Kordofan and Blue Nile regions.

Bashir also oversaw South Sudan's split from the north, under a peace deal that ended a 22-year civil war.

The land-locked South left with most of the formerly united country's 470,000 barrels per day of oil production. Pipelines and the Red Sea export terminal remain in Sudan, but the loss of oil revenues hit the north's economy badly.

Link

Africa Horn

Sudan's Bashir unveils new govt after reform calls

2013-12-09

[Pak Daily Times] Sudan's President Omar al-Bashir

International Criminal Court
... where Milosevich died of old age before being convicted ...
for alleged war crimes in Sudan's Darfur region.

Also retaining his post was Foreign Minister Ali Ahmad Karti.

A minority of cabinet members who belong to parties other than the NCP will keep their posts pending decisions by those parties, officials said.

The new vice president Saleh was a leader of the 1989 Islamist-backed coup which brought Bashir to power, Robert O. Collins wrote in "A History of Modern Sudan".

He called Saleh "an efficient and sinister defender of the revolution" who was entrusted with rebuilding the country's intelligence apparatus.

The Internal Security Bureau "demonstrated its autonomy through its extreme brutality," Collins wrote.

SMC reported that the new government was first announced by Nafie after an NCP meeting which ended at dawn.

Party officials later told news hounds that Makawi Mohammed Awad, formerly director of Sudan's railway network, becomes the new oil minister.

Finance and Economy Minister Ali Mahmud al-Rasul, who presided over the collapse of the Sudanese currency and soaring inflation, has been replaced by Badereldien Mahmoud.

He was deputy governor of the Central Bank of Sudan.

Link

Africa Horn

What Will Happen to Sudan if Bashir Steps Down?

2013-04-05

[AAWSAT.NET] One cannot help but feel bewildered by the uproar over Sudanese President Omar Al-Bashir's decision not to stand in the forthcoming elections, making room for another candidate from the ruling National Congress Party (or shall we say the Islamist movement ruling the country behind this party's façade?). Such talk is nothing new; it was mooted frequently in the past few years and even by Bashir himself on more than one occasion. So why has it elicited this uproar now?

This state of confusion is heightened by the fact that it is still too early to speak about the forthcoming presidential elections, which are scheduled for 2015. In addition to this, ruling party officials have already stated--as far back as in 2011--that Bashir did not want to stand for another term in office. These officials portrayed the situation as "an attempt to consolidate" democracy; something that nobody can believe in view of the regime's record.

For example, Rabia Abdul Ati, a leading figure in the National Congress party, speaking to AFP in February 2011, said: "I can 100 percent confirm that Bashir will not run for president in the upcoming elections, and that he will make room for other figures to assume the position." Such discourse is clear and explicit and serves as evidence that the issue had been discussed and decided as early as 2011. So how can we understand the statement issued a few days ago by Qotbi al-Mahdi, another leading figure within the National Congress Party, that the ruling party is facing a dilemma because it had not prepared an alternative candidate and that meetings are being held today to resolve this situation? In fact, Mahdi went so far as to say that in his view, the situation had passed the point where an easy way out can be found.

Is there something being cooked up behind the scenes in the ruling party, or is this just another of the regime's maneuvers to distract people's attention away from the critical issue to other futile arguments, and then pass their predetermined plans when everybody is distracted? Ever since the regime went bankrupt and came under increasing pressure, particularly from the secession of the south and public discontent with rising inflation and corruption, it has resorted to a policy of provoking controversy and disorder, aiming to divert people's attention away from real problems and give the impression that significant changes will lead the country towards greater openness.

However in reality, the government has resorted, each and every time, to imposing greater restrictions; censoring newspapers, detaining journalists, and using violence against student protests. In view of this, the regime has adopted the tactic of stirring up controversy about Bashir's successor to distract the public away from the real criticism being leveled at the government, even by some parts of the party's own leadership that have demanded serious reforms. The regime was quick to exploit this climate to pounce on some of its party members who had begun to plan forceful changes within the party. In fact, such a change would not have meant an end to the Islamist movement's regime; rather it would have reformed it to ensure its survival for years to come.

The regime's plot to stay in power, albeit in a different form, continues today through the provocation of artificial controversy over Bashir's decision not to run for president, followed by the leaking of scenarios to convince him to run under the pretext that "the country is passing through an exceptional stage," as put forward by a number of ruling party figures.

There have been a number of striking statements issued to this effect, including one by Ali Osman Taha, Vice President of Sudan and "Emir" of the ruling Islamist movement. He stated that Bashir's announcement that he will not be running for president is a "personal opinion," adding that the final decision will be made by the party's institutions. What is striking about this statement is that Taha used it as a platform to put forward the possible re-nomination of Bashir, justifying this by saying that there are national issues and tasks that require the president to perform his role and assume his national responsibilities. In fact, there are those believe that Bashir's re-nomination is meant to ward off possible divisions within the regime, particularly as some parties are of the view that Bashir is the only candidate that the National Congress Party can agree on.

In addition to this, others believe that Ali Osman Taha--who is the party's prospective candidate according to leaks--is hesitant about running for president in the elections against other rivals. These leaks to the news media claim that Taha would prefer that Bashir run for president, and then for the presidency to pass to him in his capacity as vice president should Bashir decide to step down for health reasons, particularly as the president has travelled abroad on two occasions over the past months for medical treatment.

In an interview with Qatar's Al-Sharq newspaper in May 2011 about his decision not to seek another term in office, Bashir stressed that: "In the forthcoming elections, I will have served twenty-six years as president. I will be seventy-one years old. A year in power is not like a normal year . . . particularly as the challenges and problems that we face are huge." He added that "twenty-six years in power is more than enough, whether for an individual or for the Sudanese people."

It is noticeable that Bashir did not talk about the accomplishments and achievements that would lead an individual or a nation to feel a sense of satisfaction over their performance. Rather, he spoke about the problems and challenges that he would face. If this is how the president feels, then what can we say about the Sudanese people who have suffered greatly and who have seen their country divided, the violence of war, and a warrant for the arrest of their president issued by the

International Criminal Court
... where Milosevich died of old age before being convicted ...
? This is not to mention the official statistics that show that half the Sudanese people live below the poverty line and that Sudan is perceived to be one of the most corrupt countries in the world.

In late June 2013, Bashir will be completing 24 years in power, which he seized as part of a military coup. Bashir has become the longest-serving president of an Arab Republic following the death of Qadaffy, and the downfall of Mubarak, Saleh, and Ben Ali. So why is there all this controversy if he decides not to run in the forthcoming presidential election? There can be no doubt that twenty-six years are more than enough; will Bashir's supporters understand this?

Link

Africa Horn

Sudan Opposition Rejects VP's Dialogue Call

2013-03-28

[An Nahar] Sudan's opposition on Wednesday rejected a call by the country's most powerful vice president for them to join the government in making a new constitution.

The invitation by Vice President Ali Osman Taha, who also reached out to rebels in South Kordofan and Blue Nile states, came as tension eases with neighboring South Sudan.

Taha suggested that as relations with the South improve there is a less restrictive political atmosphere within Sudan, where opposition figures have been nabbed

Link

Africa Horn

Sudan's War-Torn South Kordofan to Be Divided

2012-12-21

[An Nahar] Sudan's war-torn South Kordofan state is to be divided, giving separate status to the western part dominated by nomadic Arab Misseriya rustics, the government said on Thursday.

Vice President Ali Osman Taha "announces the establishment of West Kordofan state," the official SUNA news agency said in a brief dispatch.

The move recreates the state of West Kordofan which was eliminated in 2005 following a peace agreement between Khartoum and the Sudan People's Liberation Army/Movement that ended a 23-year civil war.

At that time Khartoum agreed to unite West and South Kordofan in line with calls from the SPLM, which was supported by ethnic fighters based in the Nuba Mountains that straddle South and West Kordofan.

The boundary between the two states fell just west of Kadugli, capital of South Kordofan where Nuba rebels formerly allied to the southern snuffies have been fighting since June last year, shortly before the South separated after an overwhelming "yes" vote in a referendum.

The rebellion by the Sudan People's Liberation Movement-North -- which Khartoum alleges is backed by South Sudan -- is concentrated in the eastern half of the state.

West Kordofan is home to most of cash-strapped Sudan's oilfields as well as to the territory of Abyei, whose final status was the most sensitive issue left unresolved when South Sudan became independent.

Sudan and South Sudan failed to settle the Abyei issue by a December 5 African Union
...a union consisting of 53 African states, most run by dictators of one flavor or another. The only all-African state not in the AU is Morocco. Established in 2002, the AU is the successor to the Organisation of African Unity (OAU), which was even less successful...
deadline.

The AU has proposed that a referendum be held next October on whether the territory joins Sudan or South Sudan.

Under that plan, members of the Dinka, a dominant South Sudanese tribe who live in the Abyei area, would have the right to vote along with Sudanese with "permanent abode".

The Misseriya, who regularly graze their animals and move through Abyei, strongly object to the plan.

Link

Africa Horn

Sudan's Islamists need new blood: vice-president

2012-11-17

[Daily Nation (Kenya)] The Islamic Movement at the heart of Sudan's ruling party needs new blood, its outgoing leader said on Thursday in a pledge unlikely to satisfy reformers inspired by the Arab Spring.

Bloody-handed vampires are never satisfied!

The call by Vice President Ali Osman Taha opened a four-yearly conference of the movement which is under pressure from reformers who say the Islamic regime has drifted from its religious foundations.

Pure-hearted bloody-handed vampires, etc.

Taha, who is stepping down after two terms as head of the movement, said it must change as part of the process of moving towards a new constitution for the country and trying to "improve freedoms."

You are free to observe Sharia as explained by our imams. You are free to dress and do your hair we tell you. You are free to keep your womenfolk housebound, ignorant and invisible. You are free...

"Those programmes need a renewal of the blood of Islamic Movement leaders, as well as a renewal of the movement's platform," he said.

As said above, vampires.

Reformers say corruption and other problems have left the African nation's government Islamic in name only, and question how much longer President Omar al-Bashir
Head of the National Congress Party. He came to power in 1989 when he, as a brigadier in the Sudanese army, led a group of officers in a bloodless military coup that ousted the government of Prime Minister Sadiq al-Mahdi and eventually appointed himself president-for-life. He has fallen out with his Islamic mentor, Hasan al-Turabi, tried to impose shariah on the Christian and animist south, resulting in its secessesion, and attempted to Arabize Darfur by unleashing the barbaric Janjaweed on it. Sudan's potential prosperity has been pissed away in warfare that has left as many as 400,000 people dead and 2.5 million displaced. Omar has been indicted for genocide by the International Criminal Court but nothing is expected to come of it.
should remain in office.

Link

Africa Horn

Student beaten to death in Khartoum clashes

2011-02-01

[Al Jazeera] A student who was beaten by police during violent anti-government demonstrations in Khartoum, Sudan's capital, has died of his wounds in Omdurman hospital, protesters have said.

"Mohammed Abdulrahman, from Ahlia University, died last night in Omdurman hospital as a result of his ... wounds after he was beaten by police," said an activist who took part in Sunday's protests.

"This morning (Monday) both Ahlia University and the Islamic University of Omdurman have been closed by a government decision," said the activist, speaking on condition of anonymity.

Two other students said Abdulrahman had fallen during the clashes and was taken to the hospital, where medics informed them that he had died early on Monday.

'Martyr'

Sunday's demonstrations followed calls by the "30 January" Facebook group for Sudanese youth to take to the streets and stage peaceful anti-government rallies across Sudan.

The Facebook group, which has around 17,000 members, confirmed Abdulrahman had died, referring to him as a "martyr" who followed in the footsteps of another student killed in the October 1964 popular uprising that toppled the military regime then in power.

"Al-Gorashy was a martyr for us. And you are our martyr now, Mohammed Abdulrahman," it said in large red lettering.

Protesters on Sunday were confronted by a heavy police presence in different parts of Khartoum and Omdurman, and in El-Obeid, aabout 600km west of the capital.

The ensuing clashes resulted in at least 64 arrests and left many wounded.

Ali Osman Taha, Sudan's vice-president, on Monday echoed earlier statements by senior Sudanese officials that the government does not fear popular protest of the kind that has shaken the government in Egypt but said such actions must be "within the law".

"The government is not afraid of anything. Freedom exists within the law, and anyone who wants to express himself has to do so within the law," Taha told a news conference in Khartoum.

Another senior member of the ruling National Congress Party branded Sunday's protests "illegal and isolated".

"These protests were illegal and isolated, and the political parties behind them were acting in an illegal way and this is not accepted," Rabie Abdul Ati told the AFP news agency.

'Revolution against dictatorship!'

The demonstrations came after nearly a week of turmoil in Egypt, and coincided with the first complete preliminary results from this month's vote on independence for south Sudan, which confirmed a landslide for secession.

In Omdurman, just across the Nile from Khartoum, around 1,000 demonstrators shouted slogans against Omar al-Bashir, the president, and hurled rocks at riot police, who retaliated with tear gas and batons.

At the medical faculty of Khartoum University, security officers tried to prevent about 300 student protesters from leaving the campus, but they eventually forced their way out onto the street, shouting: "Revolution against dictatorship!"

Police and security officers attacked them with batons, arresting several and forcing the students back inside the university compound, which was later surrounded by more than 20 police trucks.

Widespread economic and political discontent has provoked sporadic street protests in north Sudan in recent weeks, with the security forces maintaining tight control in Khartoum.

Link

Africa Horn

Sudan: What will happen to the North after secession?

2011-01-14

[Asharq al-Aswat] "Bye Bye to the North"...This is how the southerners expressed their joy as they voted in the referendum on self-determination, concluding that secession will take place even before the end of the voting process. The result of this referendum has been known and determined even before the southerners went to the poling stations, because indicators have shown that this secession has been coming for years. Any rational person, who read the events and understood the significance of the policies that were applied on the ground, could tell that the North and South were heading towards separation.

Yet it is remarkable that the southerners' joy, regarding the forthcoming secession of South Sudan has been matched by the joy seen in some circles affiliated with the Khartoum regime. Editor-in-chief of the al-Intibaha newspaper Al-Tayeb Mustafa, who also happens to be Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir's

Head of the National Congress Party. He came to power in 1989 when he, as a brigadier in the Sudanese army, led a group of officers in a bloodless military coup that ousted the government of Prime Minister Sadiq al-Mahdi and eventually appointed himself president. Omar's peculiar talent lies in starting conflict. He has fallen out with his Islamic mentor, Hasan al-Turabi, tried to impose shariah on the Christian and animist south, resulting in its imminent secessesion, and attempted to Arabize Darfur by unleashing the barbaric Janjaweed on it. Sudan's potential prosperity has been pissed away in warfare that has left as many as 400,000 people dead and 2.5 million displaced. Omar has been indicted for genocide by the International Criminal Court but nothing is expected to come of it.
uncle, wrote an article calling on the people of northern Sudan to sacrifice animals in celebration [of the south's secession] and to offer prayers in thanks, as the referendum represents a day of release for the North. He even went on to say that "God has removed what has harmed us and released us, and [Yassir] Arman, [Malik] Aqqar, and [Abd Al Aziz] al-Halo, and their followers (of northern leaders and elements of the SPLM) and those atheists who resemble them will not be able to stop us, we will begin our battle with them from today, God willing."

These extreme words do not come from someone on the fringes, but rather from someone who is close to government circles, writing in a newspaper that is published with official consent, therefore this article reflects the trend found amongst the ruling National Congress Party [NCP], and amongst the National Islamic Front, which hides behind the NCP, and which has held power since it orchestrated a coup in 1989. The attitude of this radical trend within the government is an alarming indication that there will be a period of repression and strict rule in the future, as well as the possibility of escalation and confrontation in the North. It is [also] true that there are parties within the regime that support the idea of expanding the government, and allowing opposition forces to participate within it, before the new Southern State is officially declared in July. This would mean that all parties would then become involved in the issue of secession, and the government would not bear the sole responsibility [for this]. However,
The infamous However...
such parties seem to be in the minority so far, because the regime believes it was appointed to control the North, and the recent elections have extended al-Bashir and the NCP's time in power. The regime will not accept power-sharing with an opposition it feels is weak and fragmented, unless this opposition's superficial presence in government serves its objectives, or if there is change in the course of events that threatens the government's survival. What is strange is that some state officials have begun to issue statements to the effect that the government, and the ruling NCP, are not responsible for the secession of the South. Instead, they argue that responsibility lies with the West, and Israel, because they encouraged the southerners to secede. This is of course a well known accusation, and a "broken record" in the Arab world, and we have heard this many times before. Responsibility cannot be avoided in this case. The regime, any regime, is responsible for the consequences of its policies and the agreements that it signs. The unity of the state is the responsibility of the government, and the failure to ensure and protect this ultimately represents the failure of the regime, because the survival of the nation is more important than the survival of the regime.

There can be no doubt that the Sudanese regime has adopted a strategy to deal with the post-secession phase, and so far what has been revealed of this is the imposition of a new political agenda, in line with the ideology and agenda of the National Islamic Front. The plan is for the Sudanese streets to be occupied by matters away from the subject of the South. President al-Bashir has talked about amending the constitution, and moving towards an Islamic state. Al-Bashir is supported in this by his Vice President Ali Osman Taha, who has been a prominent leader within the National Islamic Front since the military coup was carried out 21 years ago, and who some say is the man holding the strings in the regime and the ruling NCP. To return to talking about the subject of an Islamic state, the objective of this is to repel attacks on the government as a result of secession. This would see any attack or opposition branded as opposition to the Islamization of the state. It was interesting that when the call to Islamize the Sudanese state first emerged, a foreign Islamist group issued a statement in support of Sudan, in its confrontation with "foreign conspiracies", calling on the state to prohibit the referendum on southern secession. Much can be said about this statement which was issued by a group of "Mohammedan scholars" and about the fact that it came too late to have any effect. However,
The infamous However...
the most important observation is that many of the signatories of this statement were also signatories to previous statements, in support of the National Islamic Front in Sudan, whilst others were members of movements led by Dr Hassan al-Turabi after Saddam Hussein's invasion of Kuwait.

It is not likely that many Sudanese have forgotten that when the current regime first came to power it raised Islamic slogans; however this was something which was accompanied by severe repressive measures. As a result, many people today are fearful that matters are moving once again towards severe repression, particularly as the regime is anxious about the possible escalation of the Darfur crisis, as well as the country's economic problems, as it will have lost a high percentage of its oil resources with the secession of the south.

Link

Africa Horn

Sudan armies to safeguard oil flow

2010-12-08

[Al Jazeera]

The Sudan Armed Forces (SAF), the Khartoum-based government's army, and its former enemy, the Sudan People's Liberation Army (SPLA) of south Sudan, have signed an agreement to secure the flow of crude oil from Sudanese oil fields, irrespective of the outcome of the upcoming referendum on south Sudan self-determination.
Right. That'll work. And I'm gonna lose fifty pounds before Christmas.
Al Jizz's Mohamed al-Baggali, reporting from Sudan on Tuesday, said the agreement coincided with growing fears among oil companies over the post-referendum violence in Sudan.

The January 9 independence referendum in southern Sudan is a key element of the 2005 peace deal which ended a two-decade-long civil war between the north and south that killed around two million people.

Under the deal, known as the Comprehensive Peace Agreement, the south formed its own government, which has limited autonomy and in which the north has a small representation. South Sudan is nominally represented in the government of national unity, which is led by the Khartoum-based National Congress Party.

The oil treaty calls for joint military units between the SAF and the SPLA to safeguard the oil fields in the south up to July 2011. This will be based on a political arrangement to be reached after announcing the referendum results.

Mass resignations

The uncertainty that shrouds the future of the southern district has triggered mass resignations by oil workers as a precaution against possible violence related to the vote.

"We reaffirm to those working in those companies, as cited by the content of this agreement, the full commitment of the Sudanese federal government and the government of south Sudan to provide security and safety to them and to their activities", Ali Osman Taha, the Sudanese vice-president, said.

Sudan produces around 500,000 barrels of crude oil a day, by which the south Sudan government is sustained, while north Sudan gets more than half of its annual revenue.

Garang Deng, the south Sudan oil minister, said: "We hope that crude oil will keep flowing in case of unity or secession. This is because by benefiting from oil, we have improved the living conditions of the Sudanese people up to a certain level, both in north and south Sudan."

"In case the oil flow was interrupted, the living conditions of the people will begin to deteriorate," Garang added.

Uganda 'destabilising'

Meanwhile,
...back at the ranch...
the government of Sudan has accused neighbouring Uganda of supporting rebel groups in the Darfur region.

On Monday, Abdul Raheem Mohamed Hussein, the Sudanese defence minister, told Al Jizz that Uganda's role in Sudan is "destabilising" and will have negatives consequences throughout east Africa.

"There is Ugandan intentional intervention against the security and stability of Sudan. This will have a large effect on the security and stability of the whole region," the defence minister said.

The accusations were triggered by leaks to the local Sudanese media and have created diplomatic tension between the two countries.

In November, Betty Akech Okullu, Uganda's ambassador to Sudan, was twice summoned by the Sudanese foreign minister over allegations that Yoweri Museveni, the Ugandan president, promised support to a Darfur rebel group, the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM).

Link

Africa Horn

Sudan 'assures' US senator on vote

2010-10-26

[Al Jazeera] A leading US senator says Sudanese leaders have assured him they are committed to holding a referendum on southern independence on time.
And if you can't believe the govt of Sudan who can you believe?
John I was in Vietnam, you know Kerry, who is chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, said on Sunday he had met senior Sudanese officials in the north and south during a three-day visit to Africa's largest country. "I received a letter written in clear words confirming that the government of Sudan is committed to conduct southern Sudan referendum on 9th of coming January, and committed to its outcome," Kerry said in Khartoum, the capital.

The vote will decide whether the south will split from the north and become an independent state. The referendum was promised by the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA), which was signed in 2005, ending decades of the north-south civil war.

Under the agreement, the south formed its own government, which has limited autonomy and in which the north has a small representation. South Sudan is represented in the government of national unity, which is led by the Khartoum-based National Congress Party (NCP).

In addition to the broader referendum on the south's independence, a small region called Abyei, which sits astride the oil-rich border between south and north Sudan, will vote on whether it should belong to Southern Sudan or north Sudan.

Playing 'positive role'
Senior officials of the NCP have said it is "not possible" to hold the referendum on the future of Abyei on time and have suggested it be delayed for months or the territorial row be settled without a poll.

Kerry said the US was committed to playing a "positive role" in ensuring a peaceful outcome to the vote. Leaders in Sudan's north and south, he said, faced a "critical choice" between "peaceful co-existence or a return to chaos and war".
I'm guessing they'll go for chaos and war. What's your guess, John F.?
On Saturday, Kerry visited Juba - capital of the semi-autonomous South Sudan - and met officials of the Sudan People's Liberation Movement (SPLM), the ruling party. He also met Ali Osman Taha, Sudan's vice-president, and representatives of President Omar al-Bashir's ruling NCP.

Before the visit to the south, Kerry had warned of tougher US sanctions against Sudan if the governments of the north or south placed obstacles in the way of the referendum. Sudan has been under US sanctions since 1997. "I want to be clear: We want the government [in Khartoum] to tackle the referendum and respect the decision of the south," he said.

He also urged the mainly Arab north and Christian and animist south to overcome obstacles to implementing the 2005 peace agreement.

South Sudan is struggling to recover from Africa's longest civil conflict, which was fuelled by ethnicity, ideology, religion and resources such as oil and left an estimated two million people dead.

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Africa Horn

Talks on Sudan's Abyei break down

2010-10-14

[Al Jazeera] The latest round of talks between north and south Sudan over the future of the oil-producing Abyei region has failed to reach an agreement.

The issue stands as a key hurdle ahead of referendums in the country, and according to the north's National Congress party (NCP) and the south's ruling Sudan People's Liberation Movement (SPLM), "serious efforts and many productive discussions, [the delegations] did not succeed in reaching agreement on the eligibility criteria for voters in the Abyei Area referendum".

The NCP and SPLM also said in a joint statement on Tuesday that both parties "will meet again in Ethiopia toward the end of October to continue their discussions. The parties continue to commit themselves to their mutual goal of avoiding a return to conflict".

Local residents in Abyei will vote on whether the region should join north or south Sudan in a plebiscite scheduled for early next year, which was promised as part of the 2005 peace deal that ended decades of north-south civil war.

The vote is set to be held alongside south Sudan's referendum on independence from the north.

'Time is critical'
However, the head of the southern delegation warned the country could return to war if a deal is not reached.

"This round has failed," Pagan Amum, secretary-general of the SPLM, told reporters in the Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa where the talks were held.

"We are left with 90 days. The time is very critical. If the parties fail to sort out these issues this could lead to an end of the peace process itself. And the peace may unravel in Sudan."

Delegates at the meeting also told the Reuters news agency that Ali Osman Taha, Sudan's second vice-president was flying to Juba on Tuesday to meet Salva Kiir, the south Sudan president, who is also a vice-president in Sudan's national power-sharing government, in an attempt to salvage the talks.

An observer at the talks, who declined to be identified, reported that Thabo Mbeki, the former South African president, had offered to mediate when talks resumed.

Hillary Clinton, the US secretary of state, had urged the government in Khartoum to come to the talks prepared to negotiate.

Delegates in Addis Ababa told Reuters one possible solution to the impasse was to forego the referendum on Abyei and divide its territory between the north and the south.

Mounting tensions
However, the teams were unable to agree on any possible border demarcation and what would qualify as Abyei citizenship.

The SPLM says the northern government is settling thousands of Missiriya, a tribe from central Sudan, in northern Abyei to influence the vote. The Khartoum government denies this.

In a sign of mounting tension, south Sudan's army told Reuters news agency that four northern soldiers walked into the centre of Abyei town on Monday evening and started shooting randomly in the air, slightly injuring a local resident.

Along with the Abyei plebiscite, there will also be a referendum on whether south Sudan should secede from the north.

That vote is widely expected to result in the creation of Africa's newest country, a development opposed by Khartoum.

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