Showing posts with label Bin Laden. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Bin Laden. Show all posts

Thursday, June 29, 2023

Islamists wield hidden hand in Sudan conflict. Burhan calls for Sudan’s young civilians to fight against RSF

NOTE from Sudan Watch Editor: This article shows a photo of Hemeti dated 2019. Not seen his face since he was demoted to a rebel. Two unverified voice messages from him are online. Can't find news of his whereabouts. Is he still alive? No-one's asking. Rumours online say he's in a Kenyan hospital, not true says Kenyan President Ruto in a recent video news report. 

Four writers of this article use the words "conflict" and "war"to describe Sudan's current crisis. Many writers casually use the words "war" and "genocide" whether true or not. Words have power. Young people now rely on social media for news, mainstream media is not seen as trustworthy. 

The article is followed by a cartoon from a report at Radio Dabanga titled 'El Burhan calls for Sudan's 'young and capable' civilians to fight against RSF'. 

The caption for the cartoon says 'Civilians who were killed for their protests against the actions of the military and Rapid Support Forces are now being asked to defend Sudan for Lt Gen Abdelfattah El Burhan. 
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Article at Reuters.com
By Khalid Abdelaziz
Writing by Michael Georgy and Aidan Lewis, Editing by William Maclean
Published June 28, 2023, 5:05 AM GMT+1 - here is a full copy:


Exclusive: Islamists wield hidden hand in Sudan conflict, military sources say


Summary

  • Ex-intelligence agents fighting alongside army-sources
  • Army has leant on Bashir-era veterans since 2021 coup
  • Conflict pits army general against ex-militia leader

[1/5]Lieutenant General Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, deputy head of the military council and head of paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), greets his supporters as he arrives at a meeting in Aprag village, 60 kilometers away from Khartoum, Sudan, June 22, 2019. REUTERS/Umit Bektas/File Photo


DUBAI, June 28 (Reuters) - Thousands of men who worked as intelligence operatives under former president Omar al-Bashir and have ties to his Islamist movement are fighting alongside the army in Sudan's war, three military sources and one intelligence source said, complicating efforts to end the bloodshed.


The army and a paramilitary force have been battling each other in Khartoum, Darfur and elsewhere for 10 weeks in Africa's third largest country by area, displacing 2.5 million people, causing a humanitarian crisis and threatening to destabilise the region. Reinforcements for either side could deepen the conflict.


The army has long denied accusations by its rivals in the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) that it depends on discredited loyalists of Bashir, an Islamist long shunned by the West, who was toppled during a popular uprising in 2019.


In response to a question from Reuters for this article, an army official said: "The Sudanese army has no relation with any political party or ideologue. It is a professional institution."


Yet the three military sources and an intelligence source said thousands of Islamists were battling alongside the army.


"Around 6,000 members of the intelligence agency joined the army several weeks before the conflict," said a military official familiar with the army's operations, speaking on condition on anonymity.


"They are fighting to save the country."


Former officials of the country's now-disbanded National Intelligence and Security Service (NISS), a powerful institution composed mainly of Islamists, confirmed these numbers.


An Islamist resurgence in Sudan could complicate how regional powers deal with the army, hamper any move towards civilian rule and ultimately set the country, which once hosted al Qaeda founder Osama bin Laden, on a path for more internal conflict and international isolation.


Reuters spoke to 10 sources for this article, including military and intelligence sources and several Islamists.


In a development indicative of Islamist involvement, an Islamist fighter named Mohammed al-Fadl was killed this month in clashes between RSF forces and the army, said family members and Islamists. He had been fighting alongside the army, they said.


Ali Karti, secretary general of Sudan's main Islamic organisation, sent a statement of condolences for al-Fadl.


'OUR IDENTITY AND OUR RELIGION'


"We are fighting and supporting the army to protect our country from external intervention and keep our identity and our religion," said one Islamist fighting alongside the army.


Bashir's former ruling National Congress Party said in a statement it had no ties to the fighting and only backed the army politically.


The army accused the RSF of promoting Islamists and former regime loyalists in their top ranks, a charge the RSF denied. Army chief Abdel Fattah Burhan, who analysts see as a non-ideological army man, has publicly dismissed claims that Islamists are helping his forces. "Where are they?" he cried out to cheering troops in a video posted in May.


The military, which under Bashir had many Islamist officers, has been a dominant force in Sudan for decades, staging coups, fighting internal wars and amassing economic holdings.


But following the overthrow of Bashir, Burhan developed good ties with states that have worked against Islamists in the region, notably the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Saudi Arabia and Egypt. The Gulf states provided Khartoum with significant aid.


Nowadays, former NISS officers also help the military by collecting intelligence on its enemies in the latest conflict. The NISS was replaced by the General Intelligence Service (GIS) after Bashir was toppled, and stripped of its armed "operations" unit, according to a constitutional agreement.


Most of the men from that unit have sided with the army, but some former operations unit members and Islamists who served under Bashir entered the RSF, one army source and one intelligence source said.


"We are working in a very hard situation on the ground to back up the army, especially with information about RSF troops and their deployment," said a GIS official.

Reuters Graphics


BASHIR-ERA VETERANS


The army outnumbers the RSF nationally, but analysts say it has little capacity for street fighting because it outsourced previous wars in remote regions to militias. Those militias include the "Janjaweed" that helped crush an insurgency in Darfur and later developed into the RSF.


Nimble RSF units have occupied large areas of Khartoum and this week took control of the main base of the Central Reserve Police, a force that the army had deployed in ground combat in the capital. They seized large amounts of weaponry.


But the army, which has depended mainly on air strikes and heavy artillery, could benefit from GIS intelligence gathering skills honed over decades as it tries to root out the RSF.


On June 7, fire engulfed the intelligence headquarters in a disputed area in central Khartoum. Both sides accused the other of attacking the building.


After Burhan and RSF leader General Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, known as Hemedti, carried out a coup in 2021 which derailed a transition to democracy, Hemedti said the move was a mistake and warned it would encourage Islamists to seek power.


Regional heavyweights Saudi Arabia and the UAE had seen Sudan's transition towards democracy as a way to counter Islamist influence in the region, which they consider a threat.


Publicly, the army has asserted its loyalty to the uprising that ousted Bashir in 2019.


But after the military staged a coup in 2021 that provoked a resurgence of mass street protests, it leaned on Bashir-era veterans to keep the country running. A taskforce that had been working to dismantle the former ruling system was disbanded.


Before the outbreak of violence, Bashir supporters had been lobbying against a plan for a transition to elections under a civilian government. Disputes over the chain of command and the structure of the military under the plan triggered the fighting.


About a week after fighting broke out in April, a video on social media showed about a dozen former intelligence officials in army uniforms announcing themselves as reserve forces.


The footage could not be independently verified by Reuters.


Several senior Bashir loyalists walked free from prison in Bahri, across the Nile from central Khartoum, during a wider prison break amid fighting in late April. The circumstances of their release remain unclear. Bashir is in a military hospital.

[2/5]Sudan's President Omar al-Bashir addresses supporters during his visit to the war-torn Darfur region, in Bilal, Darfur, Sudan September 22, 2017. REUTERS/Mohamed Nureldin Abdallah/File Photo

[3/5]A Sudanese national flag is attached to a machine gun of Paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) soldiers as they wait for the arrival of Lieutenant General Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, deputy head of the military council and head of RSF, before a meeting in Aprag village 60, kilometers away from Khartoum, Sudan, June 22, 2019. REUTERS/Umit Bektas/File Photo 

[4/5]A burned vehicle is seen in Khartoum, Sudan April 26, 2023. REUTERS/El-Tayeb Siddig/File Photo

[5/5]Sudan's General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan walks with troops, in an unknown location, in this picture released on May 30, 2023. Sudanese Armed Forces/Handout via REUTERS/File Photo


View original: https://www.reuters.com/world/africa/islamists-wield-hidden-hand-sudan-conflict-military-sources-say-2023-06-28/


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Post script from Sudan Watch Editor:


Cartoon by Omar Dafallah, published in Radio Dabanga's report below.

Caption: Civilians who were killed for their protests against the actions of the military and Rapid Support Forces are now being asked to defend Sudan for Lt Gen Abdelfattah El Burhan 

- Cartoon by Omar Dafallah (RD)


Read more in report at Radio Dabanga, Thur 29 Jun 2023: El Burhan calls for Sudan’s ‘young and capable’ civilians to fight against RSF https://www.dabangasudan.org/en/all-news/article/el-burhan-calls-for-sudans-young-and-capable-civilians-to-fight-against-rsf )


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UPDATED Fri 30 Jun 2023 00:25 GMT+1 - added the following:


Report at Sudan Tribune

Published Tues 27 Jun 2023 - here is an excerpt:


Burhan calls on Sudanese youth to join the army


Sudan’s political parties have called for an end to the war and negotiations to integrate the RSF ahead of an inclusive political conference. For their part, the armed groups in Darfur that have signed a peace deal have declared their neutrality.


The SPLM-N, led by Malik Agar, is now fighting alongside the army after its full integration. In contrast, the SPLM-N led by Abdel Aziz al-Hilu in the Nuba Mountains and the Blue Nile has recently launched attacks against the Sudanese army, speaking about its failure to protect civilians.


Al-Burhan announced a one-day truce on the first day of Eid and reaffirmed the commitment of the armed forces to transfer power to a civilian government chosen by the Sudanese people. He further denounced the ongoing violations against civilians in Darfur as “ethnic cleansing and genocide.”


Read more: https://sudantribune.com/article274719/


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Friday, April 28, 2023

Sudan's Islamists use online networks and AI to make their move. Waiting to return is ex NISS chief Gosh

NOTE from Sudan Watch Editor: It's good to see veteran Africa correspondent Rob Crilly reporting on Sudan again. Sometime before during and after the Darfur war, Rob wrote a book cleverly titled 'Saving Darfur: Everyone's Favourite African War'. The book became well known, sold well and is still available from leading book sellers including on Kindle at Amazon.  


Here below is a summary of Rob's latest report on Sudan for the Daily Mail, followed by a copy in full. Thanks Rob, good to see you back safe and sound!

Sudan's Islamists use online networks and AI to make their move

Waiting in the wings to return are notorious figures such as Salah Gosh, former head of NISS

Social media research shows Sudan's Islamists making a push for power

It includes using AI to fake an address by the U.S. ambassador, researchers say

They are seeking a return to relevance amid fighting between rival generals 

On Sunday, US special forces carried out a precarious evacuation of the US Embassy in Sudan

Images of foreigners fleeing are being used by Islamists to say they are winning the war against the West, just like the Taliban did in Afghanistan when Americans fled in 2021

The fighting pitches army chief Gen. Abdel-Fattah Burhan, who has allied himself with the country's Islamists, against Gen. Mohammed Hamdan Dagalo (better known as Hemedti) who heads the Rapid Support Forces

While Hemedti, who rose to prominence amid the war crimes of Darfur, claims to promote democracy, Burhan has linked up with Islamists as part of his strategy to emerge as victor

‘He basically made a deal with the devil,' said Cameron Hudson, senior associate in the Africa program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies'

'And that deal was: I will allow you to reemerge and to regain a foothold in this country, and you have to support me politically and use your networks and your, your deep state influence to support me against the RFS 

Waiting in the wings to return in the event of an army victory, he said, were notorious figures such as Salah Gosh, the former leader of the feared National Intelligence and Security Service.

Read the full report from DailyMail.com


By ROB CRILLY, SENIOR U.S. POLITICAL REPORTER FOR DAILYMAIL.COM


Published: 21:09, 27 April 2023 | Updated: 21:49, 27 April 2023 - excerpts:


EXCLUSIVE Sudan's Islamists use online networks and AI to make their move: Social media accounts spread claims hardliners will seize power as democracy leaders flee during Western evacuation just like the Taliban did in Afghanistan


Sudan's Islamists are out of favor and out of power after once being the force behind the country's military rulers. 


But they are now using sophisticated social media networks and AI to try to worm their way back to a position of influence amid the country's turmoil. 


Sudan's top two military leaders have spent most of the past two weeks fighting for control of Africa's third largest nation, prompting the U.S. and other foreign nations to evacuate diplomats and nationals.


Islamist groups are using those images to claim that the West is in retreat and they are poised for victory, just like the Taliban in Afghanistan, according to research by a social media monitoring group.


Their online networks have even used AI technology to spread fake audio recordings suggesting the U.S. was trying to reduce the influence of Islam on the country.


Islamists are using a sophisticated social media operation to gain influence in Sudan. That includes using AI to fake a plot by US Ambassador John Godfrey to intervene in the country


Amil Khan, founder of Valent Projects which researches the impact of social media, said Islamists had a powerful network of accounts spreading images of Western-led evacuations, and of civilian leaders taking flights out of Khartoum.


'They're opportunistically then using that to say this is Western collapse, and linking it to Kabul allows them to try to paint themselves as victors in the same way that they see the Taliban,' he said.


'It reflects messaging around the word that the Taliban have won the US. The US left in disarray. 


'The Islamists are trying to say that we are the people that conquered them.' 


In their heyday, Sudan's Islamists turned the nation into a haven for terrorists. Osama bin Laden made his home in the capital Khartoum from 1991 to 1996. 


Khan said that although they had lost influence following the toppling of longtime dictator Omar al-Bashir in 2019, they had built a powerful online presence.   


'What they did have was this really extensive manipulation-digital infrastructure with hundreds and hundreds of mass accounts that could just get a coordinated message out and dominate the digital space,' he said.


At the same time, they were claiming that fleeing Sudanese leaders were leaving with their foreign paymasters — all part of an effort to undermine the popularity of civilian rule. 


But he added there was little evidence that Sudan's weary population was being swayed by such blatant propaganda. 


Even so, Republican Rep. Mike Waltz, a former Green Beret who sits on the House intelligence committee, said the development was deeply worrying.


'It’s absolutely a concern and we're going to lose even more visibility and intelligence gathering now that the State Department has had to pull its embassy staff,' he said.


Social media messages have celebrated the exit of former foreign minister Omar Qamar al-Din, for example.


'This is how the clients are falling one after the other,' said a post reviewed by DailyMail.com, comparing his early morning exit with the flight of officials from the Western-backed government in Kabul in 2021 as Taliban forces closed in on the Afghan capital.


Valent also concluded that Islamist accounts were behind a faked audio message supposedly from US Ambassador John Godfrey, apparently outlining strategies to impose secularism on Sudan.


'The first is international intervention with military force and imposing a new reality on this people by force of arms. This is now excluded in light of the weak world order,' the faked voice says.


'As for the other option, support us in the process of subjugating the rapid support militias and exploiting the two brothers greed for power and using them as a deterrent force and guardian of the secular democratic state, no matter how brutal it may be.'


Western governments used a ceasefire this week to bring home their diplomats and rescue as many nationals as possible.


It came after the troubled African nation was plunged into violence, two years after a coup sidelined its civilian prime minister.


Talks to lead the country back to civilian rule appeared to reach an agreement in December, but hopes of a peaceful transition were dashed by fighting that erupted two weeks ago between the head of the army and the head of the Rapid Support Force (RSF). 


RSF chief Gen. Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo (better known as Hemedti) had been deputy to General Abdel Fattah Burhan, until the two fell out over plans to integrate his militia into the army.


Witnesses have described seeing bodies on the streets of the capital and more than 500 people have been killed around the country. 


While Hemedti, who rose to prominence amid the war crimes of Darfur, claims to promote democracy, Burhan has linked up with Islamists as part of his strategy to emerge as victor.


'He basically made a deal with the devil,' said Cameron Hudson, senior associate in the Africa program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies'. 


'And that deal was: I will allow you to reemerge and to regain a foothold in this country, and you have to support me politically and use your networks and your, your deep state influence to support me against the RFS 


Waiting in the wings to return in the event of an army victory, he said, were notorious figures such as Salah Gosh, the former leader of the feared National Intelligence and Security Service.


'We know what their rule of the country looked like,' he said. 'And these are bad dudes. 


'These are these are all the guys that were responsible for all of the worst abuses of the Bashir regime.'


See gallery of 11 photos (including 5 above) with credits and these captions:

  1. Shells are seen on the ground near damaged buildings at the central market during clashes between the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces and the army in Khartoum North 
  2. Islamists helped propel an army colonel to power in 1989. They were the power behind the throne under Omar al-Bashir's reign, until he was dumped out of power in 2019
  3. Sudanese army soldiers, loyal to army chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, pose for a picture at the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) base in the Red Sea city of Port Sudan
  4. VIDEO Sudan doctor fears hospital will run out of medical supplies
  5. Islamists are using a sophisticated social media operation to gain influence in Sudan. That includes using AI to fake a plot by US Ambassador John Godfrey to intervene in the country
  6. Sudan's capital Khartoum has been rocked by two weeks of fighting between rival generals. Smoke can be seen her rising from the city's international airport last week
  7. On Sunday, U.S. special forces carried out a precarious evacuation of the U.S. Embassy in Sudan. Images of foreigners fleeing are being used by Islamists to say they are winning the war against the West, just like the Taliban did in Afghanistan when Americans fled in 2021
  8. Pictured: British Nationals about to board an RAF aircraft in Sudan, for evacuation to Larnaca International Airport in Cyprus
  9. Gen. Abdel-Fattah Burhan
  10. Gen. Mohammed Hamdan Dagalo

View the original report plus video and photo gallery here: https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-12021059/Sudans-Islamists-use-online-networks-say-seize-power-like-Taliban-did-Kabul.html


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From Amazon.co.uk


Saving Darfur - Everyone's Favourite African War


Africa is a continent riddled with conflict. Most are forgotten wars that rumble away unnoticed for decades. Darfur is different. For six years an unlikely coalition of the religious right, the liberal left and a smattering of celebrities has kept Darfur's bloody conflict in the headlines. Rob Crilly arrived in Sudan in 2005 to find out what made Darfur special. 


Far from being a simple clash of good and evil, he discovers the complicated truth about Arabs and Africans, and the world's failed attempts to halt the killing. Along the way he rides with rebels on donkeys, gets caught in a Janjaweed attack and learns lessons from Osama bin Laden's horse. What he found will turn your understanding of the war upside down.


Product description 

Review

'A haunting and brutally honest account of international failure and African suffering. Lucid, engaging and written with love for the entire continent of Africa.' --Fergal Keane, BBC News


Rob Crilly tells the story of Darfur up close, focusing on the people who have fought and suffered. Neither cynical nor moralizing, he brings to life its protagonists-rebel fighters, Arab militiamen, displaced villagers, foreign aid workers, diplomats and campaigners. Saving Darfur delves beneath the stereotypes to tackle the complexities of Darfur and Sudan, illuminating both the ordinariness and the bizarreness of this extraordinary African war.' --Alex De Waal, author of 'Darfur: A New History of a Long War'


'While I disagree with much of Mr Crilly's analysis, he provides us with a solid journalistic account of his first-hand experiences in Darfur.' --Mia Farrow, actress and activist

From the Inside Flap

`A haunting and brutally honest account of international failure and African suffering' - Fergal Keane, BBC News

From the Back Cover

'A haunting and brutally honest account of international failure and African suffering' - Fergal Keane, BBC News

'Rob Crilly tells the story of Darfur up close, focusing on the people who have fought and suffered' - Alex de Waal, author of Darfur: A New History of a Long War

'This books peels off the labels that have been stuck on Darfur by outsiders and exposes the stubborn realities beneath the surface' - Richard Dowden, Director of the Royal African Society

About the Author

Rob Crilly is a freelance foreign correspondent. For five years he lived and worked in East Africa, travelling through war zones in Sudan, Somalia, the Democratic Republic of Congo and northern Uganda, reporting for The Times, The Irish Times, The Christian Science Monitor, The Daily Mail and The Scotsman. Born in 1973, he was educated at the Judd School, Tonbridge, and Cambridge University. Before moving to Africa he spent five years working for British newspapers, most recently as Edinburgh Bureau Chief of The Herald.

View original https://www.amazon.co.uk/Saving-Darfur-Everyones-Favourite-African/dp/1906702195

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Sunday, April 16, 2023

Sudan army & RSF back 3 hr humanitarian ceasefire. UN chief demands justice for staff deaths

NOTE from Sudan Watch Editor: As reported by the BBC, it is difficult to get a true picture of situation on ground. The Sudanese army and paramilitary group Rapid Support Forces (RSF) observed a temporary ceasefire after two days of fighting. African Union chief is heading to Sudan. Many countries are keeping a close eye on Sudan. Sudan's road ahead to civilian rule is painfully long. The UN chief demands justice for staff deaths. Let us pray that the International Criminal Court is keeping its Darfur Sudan files open.

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From: BBC News LIVE reporting 

Sunday 16 April 2023 at 15:26; 5:40; 17:17; 17:23; 18:12; 18:37 GMT UK 

Edited by Rob Corp, Tom Spender, Robert Greenall 


Summary


The leaders of Sudan's army and paramilitary group the Rapid Support forces observed a temporary ceasefire after two days of fighting


The four-hour "humanitarian" window on Sunday was for the wounded to be evacuated after clashes were reported across the vast African country


The World Food Programme temporarily halts humanitarian work in Sudan after three staff were killed


The deaths happened during violence in Kabkabiya in North Darfur and two other workers were injured


The UN food agency also says one of its planes was damaged at Khartoum airport


Fighting has entered a second day as a power struggle between Sudan's army and paramilitaries rages in Khartoum and elsewhere


Sudan's doctors' union said at least 57 people have been killed as result of the fighting which broke out on Saturday


The RSF says it controls key sites in the capital but Sudan's leader - and head of the military - has rejected its claim


The African Union, leading Arab states and the US have called for an end to the fighting and a resumption of talks aimed at restoring a civilian government


Sudanese groups and the ruling military junta failed to reach an agreement last week on a handover of power


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Posted at 15:26

15:40

Sudanese army and RSF back 'urgent humanitarian ceasefire'

The two sides in the conflict in Sudan have agreed to a temporary ceasefire so that "urgent humanitarian cases" can be brought to safety.

Representatives from the Sudanese Armed Forces and the Rapid Support Forces have agreed to the proposal by the United Nations to pause fighting between 16:00 and 19:00 local time (14:00 and 17:00 GMT) on Sunday.

General Burhan of the Sudanese Armed Forces and General Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo of the Rapid Support Forces supported the proposal. 

While welcoming the agreement, UN representative in Sudan Volker Perthes said they will be held accountable to honour it.

Source: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/world-africa-65285254

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Posted at 15:26

DIFFICULT TO GET A TRUE PICTURE OF THE SITUATION ON THE GROUND

BBC Monitoring's Beverly Ochieng in Nairobi says both sides are making competing claims about areas that they have seized and it has been frustrating getting a true picture of what is happening on the ground.

State TV has just been playing music, peace music, unity music and messages, she says.

Most of the Sudanese media is only posting material on social media, and that's been the biggest source of news coming out of Sudan, she adds.

Source: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/world-africa-65285254

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AFRICAN UNION CHIEF HEADING TO SUDAN

The head of the pan-continental African Union Commission, Moussa Faki Mahamat, is planning to "immediately" go on a ceasefire mission to Sudan, the body said in a statement on Sunday. 

The organisation has been meeting to discuss the situation in Sudan.

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Posted at 17:23

WHY SO MANY COUNTRIES ARE KEEPING A CLOSE EYE ON SUDAN 




Analysis by Frank Gardner, BBC News, Security Correspondent

Sudan is one of the poorest countries, per capita, in the Arab world. But its natural resources and its strategic location on the Red Sea have attracted the attention of its Arab neighbours as well as global powers like the US. 

Russia is keen to establish a naval base on the coast and has been in talks about this with Sudan’s military leaders. 

Washington wants to prevent this and also has no wish to see Sudan return to the days when it hosted terrorist groups like Osama Bin Laden’s al-Qaida. Under US pressure, Sudan recently established diplomatic relations with Israel.

Nearer at hand, Egypt is in a close alliance with Khartoum, with both countries viewing Ethiopia with suspicion bordering on hostility. 

Since the ousting of Sudan’s military ruler General Omar Al-Bashir in 2019, both Saudi Arabia and the UAE have built up ties with Khartoum. The Saudis persuaded Sudan to send forces to join its side in Yemen’s disastrous civil war. 

The UAE sees Sudan as part of a regional network against political Islam which it views as a threat to its own way of government. 

None of this suggests much hope of an early end to Sudan’s own internal struggles.

Source: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/world-africa-65285254

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SUDAN'S LONG ROAD TO CIVILIAN RULE

By Mary Harper, Africa editor, BBC World Service


The latest deadly violence is rooted in a power struggle between two military men: one, Sudan's leader Gen Abdel Fattah al-Burhan; the other, his deputy, Gen Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo. 

He first came to prominence when he led militias on horseback during the war in Darfur, which some described as a genocide. 

Five years ago, there was huge optimism in Sudan following a revolution that led to the ousting of the dictatorial leader Omar al-Bashir who held power for 30 years. 

Now, the country is going backwards.

The path to civilian rule was always going to be difficult as Sudan has been ruled with an iron fist for so long. 

The army seemed unable to give way, staging a coup in 2021 which derailed the transition and led to months of opposition protests in which dozens were killed. 

And now the military are fighting amongst themselves, with civilians caught in the middle, their dreams of a new Sudan shattered.

Source: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/world-africa-65285254

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UN chief demands justice for staff deaths

UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres has called for "justice without delay" for the deaths of three staff during violence in Kabkabiya, in north Darfur region, his spokesman says.

"The premises of the UN and other humanitarian organisations have also been hit by projectiles and looted in several places Darfur," Stéphane Dujarric said in the statement.

Two more people were injured and the UN's World Food Programme suspended its operations in Sudan as a result of the killings.

Source: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/world-africa-65285254

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Sudan Watch Ed Update Mon 17 Apr 2023: '4 hr' changed to '3 hr' in title of the above post.