ICC Chief Prosecutor to brief UNSC on Darfur, Sudan

Photo: ICC Prosecutor Mr Karim Asad Ahmad Khan QC. Courtesy of the ICC © ICC-CPI

HERE below is a full copy of a report by What's in Blue dated 28 December 2021 confirming that next month the Chief Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague, Netherlands, Mr Karim Asad Ahmad Khan, will give his very first briefing to the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) on the ICC's Darfur-related activities.

Note, according to Wikipedia, 51-year-old Scottish-born Mr Karim Asad Ahmad Khan QC (pictured here taking his solemn oath as ICC Prosecutor on 16 June 2021) is a British lawyer and a specialist in international criminal law and international human rights law. 

Following his appointment by United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres, he was, until 2021, an Assistant Secretary-General of the United Nations and served as the Special Adviser and Head of the UN Investigative Team for the Promotion of Accountability for Crimes Committed by Da'esh/ISIL in Iraq, which was established pursuant to Security Council Resolution 2379 to support domestic efforts to hold ISIL accountable for acts that may amount to war crimes, genocide, and crimes against humanity in Iraq.

January 2022 Monthly Forecast

Sudan (Darfur)

Expected Council Action

In January, the Security Council is expected to receive the semi-annual briefing of the ICC Prosecutor on Darfur. Karim Asad Ahmad Khan, who began serving as ICC Prosecutor in mid-June 2021, will provide his first briefing to the Council on the ICC’s Darfur-related activities.

Key Recent Developments 

On 9 June 2021, in her final briefing to the Council as ICC prosecutor, Fatou Bensouda referred to the “constructive dialogue and a good spirit of cooperation” that her office had developed with the transitional government in Sudan. She spoke about her visit to Darfur the previous week and stated: “The clear and consistent message I received from Darfur victims in El Fasher, Nyala and Zalingei is that the four outstanding warrants must be executed and that suspects must be handed over to the ICC.” (ICC arrest warrants remain outstanding against former President Omar Hassan Ahmad Al Bashir, Ahmad Muhammad Harun, Abdel Raheem Muhammad Hussein, and Abdallah Banda Abakaer Nourain.) Bensouda had stressed this same message to government officials at all levels during her visit to the country, she said, and called for Sudan “to fully cooperate with the Office’s investigations, including by providing unhindered access to its territory and to the relevant records, information and materials, as well as the protection of witnesses”.

The ICC’s Pre-Trial Chamber II confirmed charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity against Ali Muhammad Abd-Al-Rahman (also known as Ali Kushayb) on 9 July 2021. Abd-Al-Rahman, reportedly a former Janjaweed militia leader who is alleged to have committed these crimes in Darfur in 2003 and 2004, surrendered in the Central Africa Republic in June 2020. His trial is expected to begin in April 2022.

Khan visited Sudan from 9-13 August 2021, meeting with senior members of the transitional government—including Chairperson of the Transitional Sovereign Council Lieutenant General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, and Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok, among others—and civil society representatives.  In a press conference in Khartoum on 12 August, he said that he had “stressed and requested that the Government of Sudan further deepen its cooperation with [his] office”. He further underscored that: “Transfer of any suspect is an important step towards achieving justice but should be preceded and accompanied by substantive and ever deepening cooperation by the Sudanese authorities”.

Also on 12 August, Sudanese Foreign Minister Mariam al-Mahdi reportedly told Sudan state media that Sudan “would hand over wanted officials to the ICC”.  At the time of writing, this had yet to occur.

On 14 December, some seven weeks after the military takeover in Sudan, an ICC delegation met in Khartoum with Malik Agar and Tahir Hajar, two former rebels who now serve on the transitional government’s Sovereign Council. Media sources indicate that the discussion focused on preparations for another visit to Sudan by Khan and the potential handover of former Sudanese officials wanted by the ICC to The Hague.

Sudan has undergone considerable political turmoil in recent months. On 25 October, the Chairperson of the Transitional Sovereign Council, Lieutenant General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, declared a nationwide state of emergency and the suspension of key provisions of the August 2019 Constitutional Document, including the transfer of the Sovereign Council chair from the military to the civilian government, which was set to take place in November. He also announced that the military would oversee Sudan’s transition until elections, to be held in July 2023. The military detained Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok and his wife and placed them under house arrest. Government officials, including ministers and civilian members of the Sovereign Council, were also arrested.

On 21 November, Hamdok was released from house arrest, following significant international criticism and mass demonstrations in Sudan against the military takeover, which were met with violence by security forces. Appearing together on television, he and al-Burhan announced a new 14-point power-sharing agreement, including Hamdok’s reinstatement as prime minister, and the release of all political detainees. Under the terms of the agreement, the parties decided to “[a]ccelerate the completion of all transitional governance institutions including the Transitional Legislative Council and the Constitutional Court”, to form “a civilian government of independent national experts (technocrats)”, and to investigate injuries and deaths during the protests following the 25 October military takeover.

The power-sharing agreement has faced opposition in Sudan. Several parties have rejected the agreement, including the main opposition alliance, the Forces for Freedom and Change Coalition (FFC). Large protests against the 25 October military takeover and the subsequent power-sharing agreement erupted in several cities in Sudan, including in the capital, Khartoum, at various times in December.

Key Issues and Options 

An underlying key issue for the Council is how to promote justice and accountability for past atrocities committed in Sudan.  A related issue for the Council is how to support enhanced cooperation between the ICC prosecutor and the government of Sudan.

In addition to receiving Khan’s briefing, Council members supportive of the ICC’s work could consider holding an informal meeting with the prosecutor to facilitate a dialogue on ways in which his office can strengthen its cooperation with the Sudanese government.

They could also hold a joint press stakeout encouraging improved relations between the Sudanese government and the ICC.

Council and Wider Dynamics

The Council is divided on the work of the ICC.  Albania, Brazil, France, Gabon, Ghana, Kenya, Ireland, Mexico, Norway, and the United Kingdom are states party to the Rome Statute of the ICC, while China, India, Russia, the UAE, and the US are not. These distinctions do not necessarily reflect how members view the court’s work on Sudan, however. For example, although not a party to the Rome Statute, the US has long supported the ICC’s efforts with regard to Sudan.

Among the wider membership of the UN, African countries have long expressed concern that the court focuses its work inordinately on Africa.

View original: https://www.securitycouncilreport.org/monthly-forecast/2022-01/sudan-darfur-12.php?

URGENT MESSAGE TO ICC: Sudan’s Dagalo, Burhan, Bashir must be tried for alleged war crimes - Ethiopia’s war triggers fears in Kenya, South Sudan

NOTE from Sudan Watch Editor: After 18 years of gathering news on Sudan and South Sudan for documenting at this site, the below copied report by Al Jazeera.com is, to me, the last straw. I'm shocked that on Fri, 26 Nov. 2021 Al Jazeera decided to publish the report containing its exclusive interview with Gen Dagalo aka Hemeti, deputy of military coup leader Gen Burhan.

Something seems to have changed at Al Jazeera. A recent news report at its website showed a video of a man talking (probably Sudanese Prime Minister Hamdok, I can't recall). The video's audio consisted of a male narrator seemingly providing, in English, an interpretation of what was being said by the man on film. There were no subtitles showing what the man on film was saying. Also, in that report (or another video report on Sudan) Al Jazeera used sinister, anxiety provoking music in the background, like the beating of an electronic war drum. To my ears the music and beat sounded Arabic.

My point is, after 18 years - and after seeing Aljazeera's interview with Hemeti (see link below) and noting its date - I believe the time has now come for Messrs Dagalo, Burhan and Bashir to be put on trial by the International Criminal Court (ICC) as soon as humanly possible. There is no time to waste.

In the interview, Hemeti shows his true colours for all to see by wearing civilian clothing: a dark navy blue suit and tie, white shirt, black footwear, a small enamel Sudanese flag on his lapel in an effort to appear worldly and presidential. Surely, the interview is evidence of Hemeti's intention to preside over Sudan even if it's not what the people want or in the best interest of the country. The people of Sudan want civilian, not military rule. If memory serves, former Sudanese President Bashir fondly nicknamed Dagalo "Hemeti" his little boy, the son he never had. Hemeti is Bashir's heir. 

Reportedly, an editor at Al Jazeera was recently arrested by the junta and released soon after. Who knows whether Al Jazeera was forced into doing the interview to include in a news report at its website as a condition of the editors’s safety and release. I wonder how the interview came about and when and where it took place. I have not seen much publicity about the film.

I have no doubt that Al Jazeera accurately quoted Hemeti in its report and that the timing of its publication and interview is an attempt by Hemeti to reduce the power, support and popularity of PM Hamdok in order to justify the coup and frame Hamdok as a complicit participant in it for personal gain.

Here at Sudan Watch there is a copy of a recent news report by AP featuring one of PM Hamdok's former colleagues recently released from detention who said they felt a coup could happen but didn't know when. 

This is the exact quote: "Faisal Saleh, an advisor to Prime Minister Abdallah Hamdok, told The Associated Press that security forces took him blindfolded from his home in the early hours of Oct. 25. “We were expecting that there was a military coup coming," said Saleh, who also served as minister of information from 2019 until earlier this year. ”We just didn't know how or when it would take place." 

Aljazeera's interview with Hemeti catches him red handed on film working against Sudan blatantly risking its destabilisation and causing suffering to its people again. He's poorly educated, dim witted and doesn't understand English. He's so ruthless and cruel he could be a psychopath. For him to be in charge of Sudan would be a disaster. It'd plunge the country back into the dark ages upending millions of Sudanese lives.

Nowadays, wars like the current one between the US and China need not be conducted in the old ways of the past. They can be a war of words and cyber attacks. The pen is mightier than the sword. Note the tags at the end of this post and the one labelled '51 names for ICC’. 

Right now, the world is in a precarious state. Russia is agitating to undermine the west. Ethiopia is suffering war (see maps below). France and others and the UN have advised their people in Ethiopia to leave. 

I've waited 18 years for the time to be right for Messrs Bashir, Burhan, Dagalo to be tried by the ICC. The people of Sudan deserve to see justice served and to know that anyone suspected of a crime can be apprehended and tried fairly in a court and treated as innocent until proven guilty.

If a suspected criminal is innocent, they’d have nothing to fear. They'd be fairly treated and released if found innocent. The people of Sudan need to know that criminals and war criminals cannot walk freely with impunity. 

Only by holding Messrs Dagalo, Burhan, Bashir to account will young Sudanese people understand that what is happening now, and why, is the culmination of a 30+ year story filled with death, destruction and unspeakable horrors inflicted on millions of Sudanese civilians, forcing survivors to flee for their lives with just the clothes they were wearing.

I'm writing this in haste. Time is of the essence. If there are any errors in this urgent open message to the ICC, it doesn't matter. What matters is that Dagalo, Burhan and Bashir are questioned under oath, asap.

I’ll leave this note with a link to Aljazeera's report and its must-see video interview at the top of this page before I go on strike in protest of the wicked claims made by Hemeti in his power-grab for the presidency.

I shan't return until the ICC issues a statement explaining its findings and intentions regarding Messrs Bashir, Burhan, Dagalo. Sad to say, Darfur is under attack again. God help the Sudanese people. Peace and love, Ingrid x

Here is a copy of an exclusive report at Al Jazeera.com

Written by Al Jazeera.com English - reprinted online by MSN.com

Published at Al Jazeera.com dated Friday 26 November 2021 c.11am GMT

Title: Sudan’s PM Hamdok backed military takeover, says general

Deputy head of Sudan’s sovereign council, General Dagalo, tells Al Jazeera that reinstated Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok was part of discussions leading to the military takeover in October.

Sudanese Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok was deposed by the military on October 25 but reinstated as interim premier November 21 [File: Ashraf Shazly/AFP]

The deputy head of Sudan’s governing sovereign council, General Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, has said that Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok was aware of last month’s military takeover before it happened and was “completely agreeable” to it.

Hamdok was deposed by the military on October 25 but reinstated as interim premier after signing a deal on Sunday with Sudan’s top general to restore the transition to civilian rule.

“What happened on October 25 was the ultimate outcome of a long process. Many discussions were made, and many initiatives proposed,” Dagalo, also known as Hemeti, told Al Jazeera in an exclusive interview released on Friday.

“The prime minister himself proposed two initiatives during the meetings. We were left with three options, the best of which was the move we took, and it was completely agreeable to the prime minister himself,” said Dagalo. “We did not make such a move on our own.”

Reporting from Khartoum, Al Jazeera’s Resul Serdar said that the claims were a “bold allegation” since many Sudanese people have been asking whether Hamdok was part of the military takeover or had been aware it would happen.

“When I asked him, he said he didn’t know that the military coup was coming,” said Atas, referring to a recent interview with the prime minister after he was reinstated this week.

“Now the deputy chairman says they had actually discussed it with Hamdok and he knew of the military takeover before it took place,” said Atas.

“People were already questioning his independence. After this allegation, people will question his legitimacy even more,” he added.

On October 25, top General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan dissolved the government, arrested the civilian leadership, and declared a state of emergency – drawing widespread international condemnation and triggering widespread anti-coup protests.

Hamdok was placed under house arrest after the military seized power.

On November 11, al-Burhan issued a decree creating a new 14-member ruling sovereign council, with himself at the head.

The coup, more than two years after a popular uprising forced the removal of longtime strongman Omar al-Bashir, derailed a transition towards democratic elections and drew international criticism.

The 14-point deal between Hamdok and the military, signed in the presidential palace in Khartoum on Sunday, provided for the release of all political prisoners detained during the coup and stipulated that a 2019 constitutional declaration be the basis for a political transition, according to details read out on state television.

Following the deal, the reinstated premier told Al Jazeera that he would form a “technocratic government” made up of qualified professionals to lead the country to elections by June 2023.

The deal was largely welcomed by the international community, but Sudanese pro-democracy activists have rejected it as an “attempt to legitimise the coup”.

They demand that the military should not be part of any future Sudanese government and Sudanese people have continued to protest against the military’s involvement in politics since the agreement was signed.

“Tens of thousands of people have been back to the streets, insisting on their demands,” said Serdar, who added that the formation of a new cabinet and the release of political prisoners are the two main issues yet to be resolved.

Twelve cabinet ministers also submitted their resignation to Hamdok in protest against the deal between the prime minister and the military.

At least 41 people have been killed during confrontations with security forces since the coup, as security forces have at times used live rounds to disperse anti-coup demonstrators.

View reprint at MSN: https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/sudan-e2-80-99s-pm-hamdok-backed-military-takeover-says-general/ar-AAR9JCg

View original report and Aljazeera's 26-minute video interview with Hemeti entitled Sudan's General Dagalo: Military takeover was the 'best option': https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2021/11/26/sudan-pm-hamdok-backed-military-takeover-general-dagalo

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Ethiopia’s war triggers fears in Kenya, South Sudan

NOTE from Sudan Watch Editor: Here are two maps showing Ethiopia's proximity to Sudan, South Sudan, Kenya, Eritrea, Somalia.

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From the website of The International Criminal Court (ICC) 

Trying individuals for genocide, war crimes, crimes against humanity, and aggression

The Court is participating in a global fight to end impunity, and through international criminal justice, the Court aims to hold those responsible accountable for their crimes and to help prevent these crimes from happening again. 

​​The Court cannot reach these goals alone. As a court of last resort, it seeks to complement, not replace, national Courts. Governed by an international treaty called the Rome Statute, the ICC is the world’s first permanent international criminal court. 

Towards stability and lastin​g peace

Justice is a key prerequisite for lasting peace. International justice can contribute to long‐term peace, stability and equitable development in post‐conflict societies. These elements are foundational for building a future free ​of violence. ​​

Read more: https://www.icc-cpi.int/about

Omar Hassan Ahmad Al Bashir

President of the Republic of Sudan since 16 October 1993 at time of warrants. Arrest warrants: 4 March 2009 and 12 July 2010

Charges: five counts of crimes against humanity: murder, extermination, forcible transfer, torture, and rape; two counts of war crimes: intentionally directing attacks against a civilian population as such or against individual civilians not taking part in hostilities, and pillaging; three counts of genocide: by killing, by causing serious bodily or mental harm, and by deliberately inflicting on each target group conditions of life calculated to bring about the group's physical destruction, allegedly committed at least between 2003 and 2008 in Darfur, Sudan

Read more: https://www.icc-cpi.int/darfur/albashir

See the other defendants at large including Abdel Raheem Muhammad Hussein, Ahmad Muhammad Harun ("Ahmad Harun"), Abdallah Banda Abakaer Nourain here: 

https://www.icc-cpi.int/defendants?k=At%20large

RSF's Hemeti Dagalo is blackmailing the international community into recognising his control of Sudan

The man who did so much to contribute to the flight of more than 350,000 Darfuri refugees to Chad is now attempting to blackmail the international community into recognizing his illegitimate, coup-born military control of Sudan. He cares nothing for the people he threatens to use pic.twitter.com/G3xhOFDhJp

— Eric Reeves (@sudanreeves) December 1, 2021

Sudan's Hamdok says investigation launched into violations against protesters

Here is a full copy of a report by Reuters

Reporting by Lilian Wagdy and Nayera Abdallah; Editing by Chris Reese and Aurora Ellis

Published at au.finance.yahoo.com

Tuesday, 23 November 2021, 10:36 pm

Sudan's Hamdok says investigation launched into violations against protesters

CAIRO (Reuters) - An investigation has been launched into violations committed against protesters since the military power grab on Oct. 25, Sudan's newly reinstated Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok said, according to a statement from his office.

Hamdok's comments came during a meeting on Tuesday evening with a group from the Forces of Freedom and Change (FFC), the main civilian coalition opposing military rule. FFC had previously said on Sunday that it does not recognize any political agreement with the military leadership.

The group stressed during the meeting the importance of laying out a roadmap to implementing the political agreement, reversing all political appointments that took place after the military takeover and reinstating all those who were fired during that period, according to the statement.

Last week, protesters and a Reuters witness said they saw security forces chase protesters into neighbourhoods and homes to carry out arrests. At least 15 people were shot dead during the anti-coup protests, according to medics.

Hamdok and the group called for political prisoners to be released as soon as possible and for the right to peacefully protest to be respected.

Under the agreement signed with military leader General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, Hamdok, first appointed after the overthrow of former President Omar al-Bashir in a 2019 uprising, will lead a civilian government of technocrats for a transitional period.

The deal faces opposition from pro-democracy groups that have demanded full civilian rule since Bashir's ouster and have been angered by the deaths of dozens of protesters since the Oct. 25 coup.

FILE PHOTO: Sudan's then-Prime Minister, Abdalla Hamdok, speaks during a Reuters interview in Khartoum

View original: https://au.finance.yahoo.com/news/sudans-hamdok-says-investigation-launched-223629020.html

Sudanese court orders telcos to restore internet

SEVERAL Sudanese told The National  they have resorted to using word of mouth and leaflets to organise demonstrations against the military takeover because internet access was cut. Read more:

From The National by Nada AlTaher

Dated Wednesday 10 November 2021 

Sudan still without internet despite court order to restore services

Photo © MOHAMED NURELDIN ABDALLAH Thousands of Sudanese have joined mass protests against the military takeover on October 25. Reuters

A Sudanese court has ordered the three main telecoms providers in the country to restore internet access, but services were still disrupted more than two weeks after they were first cut off.

Internet activity monitor NetBlocks reported on Tuesday that the disruption, which began on October 25 when a military takeover deposed Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok, largely continued after the court order.

The US Agency for International Development Mission in Sudan said cuts to internet services were a breach of international law and a “suppression of freedom of speech".

On Tuesday, Sudan's military chief Gen Abdel Fattah Al Burhan issued a decision to form a group to strip financial support from the Empowerment Removal Committee.

The committee, which has been suspended, was established after former president Omar Al Bashir was ousted. It was set up to dismantle Al Bashir's regime and dissolve his National Congress Party.

Sudanese opposition groups have called for another “march of millions” protest to be held on Saturday, November 13.

Several Sudanese told The National they have resorted to using word of mouth and leaflets to organise demonstrations against the military takeover because internet access was cut.

Large protests were staged on October 30 to mark the anniversary of the 2019 uprising, with thousands of people taking to the streets to show their opposition to the removal of Mr Hamdok.

Cuts to internet access during political unrest is not uncommon in Sudan. Services were disrupted during the nationwide protests that toppled Al Bashir.

Mediation efforts between the military and civilian leaders continue to stall.

See two tweets in original copy here: https://www.msn.com/en-ae/news/world/sudan-still-without-internet-despite-court-order-to-restore-services/ar-AAQwN72

Sudan mediators hit 'hurdles' after coup

Here is a copy of a news report in full by Agence France-Presse (AFP) News 

Dated Tuesday, 2 November 2021 at 1:36 PM - reprinted by International Business Times.com

Sudan Mediators Hit 'Hurdles' After Coup

Just over a week after Sudan's top general locked up political leaders and seized power sparking mass protests and a deadly crackdown, mediators are seeking to restore the transition to civilian rule.

But experts warn that Sudan's military and civilian leadership are deeply divided, senior figures remain under military guard, and rebuilding trust between rival factions is a mammoth task.

"We sat with all actors from the military and civilian sides," one mediator said on condition of anonymity.

That intermediary is among a stream of leading Sudanese figures -- including businessmen, academics and journalists -- who have been trying to break the stalemate.

"We secured initial consent for talks, but hurdles remain in the way," the mediator added.

Sudan has enjoyed only rare democratic interludes since independence in 1956 and spent decades riven by civil war.

Since August 2019, the northeast African country had been ruled by a joint civilian-military council as part of the now derailed transition to full civilian rule.

But in a move widely condemned internationally, General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan -- Sudan's de facto leader since the 2019 ouster of autocratic president Omar al-Bashir -- last week dissolved the government, detained the civilian leadership, and declared a state of emergency.

It triggered nationwide mass protests against the military -- demonstrations met by a deadly crackdown by security forces, resulting in at least a dozen people killed and scores wounded.

After armed troops were sent to crush protesters, street demonstrations have faded, although the situation remains volatile.

World powers demanded a swift return to civilian rule, and made punitive aid cuts that will hit hard in a country already mired in a dire economic crisis.

Last week, Burhan, a veteran general who served under Bashir's three-decades long iron fisted rule, vowed to form another civilian government.

Yet the two sides remain far apart.

"The civilians feel burnt by what their military partners did on October 25th," and will have "a high expectation" of guarantees to trust the military again, said Jeffrey Feltman, the US special envoy for the Horn of Africa.

Both sides, however, are going to need to work together, Feltman added.

"One's not going to be able to sideline the military, just as the military should not be trying to sideline civilians as they are now."

He told reporters the US has been in touch with Egypt and the United Arab Emirates to discuss Sudan's crisis.

The main civilian bloc, the Forces for Freedom and Change (FFC) which led anti-Bashir protests, had just before the coup divided into two opposing factions, with a splinter group supporting the military.

The mainstream FFC remains committed to civilian rule. It says civilian leaders -- including Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok, who is effectively under house arrest -- must be freed before negotiations can progress.

"We insisted on the release of civilian detainees and resumption of the power-sharing deal as a prerequisite for talks," said Kamal Ismail, an FFC leader, after meetings with African Union officials.

"We believe these are not conditions. They are simply our rights."

The AU last week suspended Sudan's membership "until the effective restoration of the civilian-led transitional authority", and a team from the bloc's Peace and Security Council is expected in Khartoum on Wednesday.

United Nations officials and Western diplomats have called for the return of the government.

"We're engaging with all Sudanese across a very broad political spectrum," said Volker Perthes, UN special representative to Sudan, said Monday.

Neighbouring South Sudan, which contributes significantly to Khartoum through fees for sending its oil to export through a pipeline in Sudan, sent presidential adviser Tut Gatluak to try to help broker talks.

"We seek to bring all sides to hold a comprehensive dialogue on all issues," Gatluak said.

Other senior Sudanese mediators have held two meetings with Burhan on behalf of the FFC.

"He listened to the demands, and said he would take them into consideration," one mediator said on condition of anonymity.

However, the mediator warned they did not expect a resolution any time soon.

"We don't expect the military to heed these demands on the first attempt," he added, citing "ongoing tensions and the lack of trust."

PHOTO: A man walks past gas cylinders in Sudan's capital Khartoum on November 2, 2021 as talks to broker peace between rival factions continue Photo: AFP / Ashraf SHAZLY

IMAGE: Key economic indicators for Sudan. AFP / Jonathan WALTER

PHOTO: AFP / - Sudanese anti-coup protesters gathered in their thousands on October 30, 2021 to express their support for the country's democratic transition 

PHOTO: AFP / ASHRAF SHAZLY: Sudanese Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok, seen here in August 2020, has been pressing for the United States to delist his nation as a state sponsor of terrorism 

Copyright AFP. All rights reserved.

View original:  https://www.ibtimes.com/sudan-mediators-hit-hurdles-after-coup-3329722

Sudan: Hamdok says solution hinges on return of govt

NOTE from Sudan Watch editor:  Although there is a lack of news about Sudan’s cabinet ministers, their current whereabouts and how well they are being treated, it is clear that the UN Security Council and many ambassadors and diplomats round the world are following events closely and doing everything possible to ensure Mr Hamdok and his detained ministers and politicians are being kept safe and well.

Shortly after the military coup, a news report stated that a cabinet minister had been arrested at home during the night and taken to an unnamed location still wearing his night clothes. 

The following copy of a news report by AFP says PM Hamdok is quoted as saying "the release of the cabinet ministers and the full reinstatement of the government could pave the way to a solution”. The source of the quote is the Facebook page of Sudan’s information ministry.

The report reveals that the coup leader Gen Burhan said the detainees were being kept in "a decent place" and that those facing charges "will be moved to where the accused are usually taken while the rest will be released."

I have no verifiable news about current internet access in Sudan, cut off by the junta during the coup.

Here is a full copy of a news report written by Agence France-Presse (AFP)

Published at France24 dot com

Dated Monday, 1 November 2021, 9:23 pm

Sudan's ousted PM says solution hinges on return of govt: ministry

Sudan's ousted Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok said Monday [Nov 1] the reinstatement of his government, dissolved in a military coup, could pave the way to a solution in the country, the information ministry said.

Hamdok spoke during a meeting at his home, where he is under effective house arrest, with the ambassadors of the United States, Britain and Norway, the ministry which remains loyal to the prime minister said.

On October 25, Sudan's top general Abdel Fattah al-Burhan dissolved the cabinet as well as the ruling joint military-civilian Sovereign Council which had been heading Sudan's transition towards full civilian rule following the 2019 overthrow of autocrat Omar al-Bashir.

In a move widely condemned internationally, Burhan declared a state of emergency and detained Sudan's civilian leadership, including Hamdok and members of his government.

Hamdok, an international economist, was later released and placed effectively under house arrest.

The ousted prime minister "insisted on the legitimacy of his government and transitional institutions", the information ministry said on its Facebook page.

He added that "the release of the cabinet ministers and the full reinstatement of the government could pave the way to a solution," the ministry said.

Hamdok, according to the statement, demanded that the situation in Sudan return to what it was before the coup, refusing to negotiate with the military rulers.

The statement added that the three ambassadors also informed Hamdok that the US special envoy for the Horn of Africa, Jeffrey Feltman, would arrive at dawn Tuesday in Khartoum "to pursue efforts to ease the crisis".

'Dangerous legal situation'

Earlier Monday [Nov 1] a Sudanese lawyer representing the detained civilian leaders said their whereabouts is unknown and that they are in a "dangerous legal situation".

Kamal al-Gizouli is the lead defence lawyer on a team of attorneys which has come forward to represent them with the backing of their families.

Gizouli said his team went to an agency "where they were believed to have been held but we found that they were not there."

Gizouli expressed concern about the well-being of the detainees and called on those holding them to reveal their location.

"These detainees are in the most dangerous legal situation" since nothing was known about their case nor who was heading the investigation, he added.

Little is known about the whereabout of his cabinet and the members of the council that had been tasked with paving the way to full civilian rule.

Burhan had since August 2019 chaired the council, working alongside Hamdok's government under a power-sharing deal that outlined the post-Bashir transition.

The arrangement came under strain, however, as splits deepened between the civilians and the military.

Jonas Horner, senior analyst for Sudan at International Crisis Group think tank, speaking to AFP earlier Monday, said Hamdok will "find that his political cache has been boosted" by recent events, "and that he is in fact strengthened from what was a relatively weak position previously."

Horner cited, for example, Hamdok's "principled stance" prior to the putsch in refusing to dissolve his government.

In a news conference last week, Burhan defended the military's takeover, saying it was "not a coup" but a move to "rectify the course of the transition".

The general also said the detainees were being kept in "a decent place" and that those facing charges "will be moved to where the accused are usually taken while the rest will be released."

Sudanese and international efforts have been made to mediate a way out of the crisis since the coup.

"We call on all sides mediating to resolve the crisis to demand that the whereabouts of these ministers and politicians be known," said Gizouli.

On Sunday, the UN special representative to Sudan, Volker Perthes, said options for mediation have been discussed with Hamdok and other Sudanese stakeholders.

Photo and caption: Sudan's ousted Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok, pictured in September 2021, has been effectively under house arrest since the military coup (AFP/-)

bur-mon/hkb/it

View original: https://www.france24.com/en/live-news/20211101-sudan-s-ousted-pm-says-solution-hinges-on-return-of-govt-ministry

Inside the frantic days leading to Sudan’s coup

Report by ABDI LATIF DAHIR and DECLAN WALSH, The New York Times

Published: Sun 31 Oct 2021 08:21 AM BdST - Reprinted by bdnews24.com

Title: 'They lied.’ Inside the frantic days leading to Sudan’s coup

For days, the American envoy navigated between Sudan’s army chief and prime minister, striving to head off the collapse of a tenuous democratic transition in the country that had been two years in the making.

In a frantic series of meetings in the Sudanese capital of Khartoum last weekend, Jeffrey Feltman, the US envoy to the Horn of Africa, sought to narrow the differences between the army chief, Lt Gen Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, and the civilian prime minister, Abdalla Hamdok, who had been sharing power since the 2019 ouster of longtime autocrat Omar al-Bashir.

At a final meeting Sunday afternoon, al-Burhan argued that Sudan’s Cabinet should be dismissed and replaced with technocrats but gave no indication he was preparing to seize power. With that reassurance, the American diplomat wrapped things up and caught a flight to Qatar where, on landing, his phone lit up: A coup was underway in Sudan.

“They lied to him,” said Nureldin Satti, Sudan’s ambassador to the United States, referring to his country’s military leadership. “This is very serious, because when you lie to the US, you have to pay the consequences.”

No one factor appeared to prompt al-Burhan to call a halt to Sudan’s democratic transition. Nor is it certain his coup will succeed, given the mass demonstrations called for this Saturday.

In a series of interviews with analysts and multiple American, Sudanese and European officials, a picture emerged of a military that had grown frustrated with its civilian partners and was intent on maintaining its privileged position and avoiding any investigations into its business affairs or human rights abuses during al-Bashir’s three decades of rule.

Some also faulted the civilian opposition for failing to assuage the generals’ fears of prosecution while the transition to democracy was still underway, while one US official said that Russia had encouraged the coup in hopes of securing commercial advantages and a port on the Red Sea.

Sudan’s civilian leadership had been living in fear of a military coup for at least 18 months. Last weekend, as pro-military protesters camped outside the presidential palace and a pro-military ethnic group closed off the country’s main seaport, it seemed imminent.

Around noon Monday, al-Burhan announced the dissolution of the country’s governing bodies, arrested the prime minister, blocked the internet and announced a nationwide state of emergency. He also disbanded the committees managing the country’s trade unions, while his security forces arrested top civilian leaders, at least one of whom was badly beaten, according to Western officials who spoke on condition of anonymity, under normal diplomatic practice.

His moves plunged the nation into a wave of deadly protests and work stoppages, and drew condemnation from regional and global leaders who insisted on the need to return to civilian leadership. But none of that has seemed to soften the resolve of al-Burhan and his confederates.

“We are back to square one,” said Jihad Mashamoun, a Sudanese researcher and analyst. “General al-Burhan has once again set the seal on the military’s dominance in Sudanese affairs, and the people will come out to face him.”

Little known before 2019, al-Burhan, 61, rose to power in the tumultuous aftermath of the military-led coup that ousted al-Bashir. Then the inspector general of the armed forces, he played a role in sending Sudanese troops, including children, to fight in Yemen’s civil war. He had also served as a regional army commander in Darfur, when 300,000 people were killed and millions of others displaced in fighting between 2003 and 2008.

A close associate of al-Bashir, the general firmly believed the military was the most important institution in the country, tantamount to the state itself, said Cameron Hudson, a nonresident senior fellow with the Atlantic Council’s Africa Centre.

Thrust into the public eye following a popular uprising against the strongman ruler, he proved a reluctant leader, unaccustomed to the international stage. Under the long decades of isolation and international sanctions under al-Bashir, his sphere of travel had been limited to a handful of Middle Eastern countries, including Egypt and the United Arab Emirates.

By contrast, Hamdok, 65, an economist by training, had spent much of his career working at international financial institutions and consulting firms.

The two leaders remained amicable in the beginning, with Hamdok’s government overseeing a raft of reforms that succeeded in removing Sudan from the US list of countries that sponsor terrorism, banned female genital cutting and scrapped apostasy laws. He also signed a peace agreement with rebel groups.

But their relationship soon soured over the question of how best to manage the country and the economy. Those differences deepened after a coup attempt in September.

Tensions rose further in recent months as pro-democracy groups stepped up calls for the military to relinquish power to civilians and for the transitional government to investigate human rights abuses and corruption under al-Bashir. The military balked, analysts and officials said, fearful that any measures of accountability would expose their personal, financial and factional interests.

“It’s all tactical retreat,” said Hudson, arguing that the generals signed the power-sharing agreement in 2019 to relieve pressure on the military, not because they truly believed in it. “The only throughline in all of this is the military’s survival.”

Another divisive issue was whether to hand over al-Bashir to the International Criminal Court, where he has been charged with crimes against humanity and other offenses. Neither al-Burhan nor Lt. Gen. Mohamed Hamdan, also known as Hemeti, head of the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces that were accused of genocidal violence in Darfur, have been indicted by the court, and analysts say they are keen to maintain the status quo.

“The two generals have had very close relations since Darfur and have everything to worry about if Mr al-Bashir is taken to the ICC,” Mashamoun said. “They would like to see some sort of immunity.”

The armed forces and intelligence services have also resisted efforts to rein in their extensive financial power.

Together they control hundreds of state-owned enterprises dealing in the production and sale of minerals, including gold, imports and exports of livestock, construction materials and pharmaceuticals. Rife with corruption, the companies rarely contribute their profits to the national budget, said Suliman Baldo, a senior adviser at The Sentry, a Washington-based group that seeks to expose corruption in Africa.

Al-Burhan also heads the board of trustees for Defence Industrial Systems, one of the military’s biggest firms. “He is doubling up as a corporate baron while he’s also the general commander of the army and now the de facto head of state,” Baldo said.

But civilian leaders in the transitional government bear some of the blame for the breakdown in relations, said Satti, the Sudanese ambassador, whom the military said Thursday it had fired along with other ambassadors who had publicly condemned the coup. Satti insisted that he was still on the job.

“There is a tug of war and a mutual provocation between the two sides,” he said. He added that some civilians did not understand the importance of alleviating the military’s fears.

With rising inflation and a shortage of basic goods, Hamdok faced a lot of pressure, too. A technocrat by training and temperament, he lacked the political skills to manage the tensions, Satti said.

There were “too many actors, a lot of disagreements and not a proper background to understand the requirements of the moment,” he said. “And he pushed too hard, too fast.”

Analysts said that al-Burhan would not have undertaken the coup without at least the tacit approval of powerful allies in the Middle East. Two of those, Egypt and the UAE, have yet to criticise the coup, while Saudi Arabia has condemned it, the US State Department said in a statement.

Al-Burhan has defended the coup as necessary to avert a “civil war” and promised to transfer power following elections in 2023. It is a timeline many young Sudanese say they do not agree with, a point they plan on making in Saturday’s protests.

“It’s going to be a showdown,” Mashamoun said.

© 2021 The New York Times Company

IMAGE, General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan attends a news conference during the International Conference in support of Sudan at the Temporary Grand Palais in Paris, France, May 17, 2021. REUTERS 

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Why Sudan’s coup leader Gen Burhan risked a blatant power grab - Who can trust him to keep his word?

NOTE from Sudan Watch Editor:  Here below is a copy of Professor Dr. Alex de Waal’s latest Sudan coup analysis, published at BBC NEWS in the early hours of Wed 27 Oct 2021. British-born Alex (pictured below) is the executive director of the World Peace Foundation at the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University in the US. 

If you zoom in on the photo of Alex you can see some of the books are about Sudan and South Sudan. The large grey book with the title MASS STARVATION printed in a white circle is one of his many published works. This is not the most flattering photo available online. I have chosen it because it conveys some of the weariness and exhaustion he must feel after the miles of serious papers he has read during his lifetime. The deeply sad and difficult subjects he studies and writes about are, I believe, succeeding in making an important contribution towards world peace. 

The twitter account of World Peace Foundation @WorldPeaceFdtn is at: https://twitter.com/WorldPeaceFdtn

A list of published works by Alex de Waal is at Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alex_de_Waal

IMAGE, Professor Dr. Alex de Waal. IMAGE SOURCE, World Peace Foundation, Tufts University: 

https://sites.tufts.edu/reinventingpeace/2018/05/14/new-video-alex-de-waal-on-mass-starvation/

Sudan coup: Why the army is gambling with the future

Analysis at BBC NEWS online

By ALEX DE WAAL

Africa analyst

Published Wednesday 27 October 2021

Sudan's coup leader General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan has taken a leap into the dark. 

He has endangered Sudan's international standing as a nascent democracy, imperilled essential debt relief and international aid, and jeopardised peace with rebels in Darfur and the Nuba Mountains.

He was head of Sudan's Sovereign Council and the face of the army in the country's civilian-military cohabitation - until Monday, when he seized complete power.

He dissolved the country's civilian cabinet, arresting Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok and other prominent civilians with whom the military had agreed to share power until elections were held next year.

The general's autocratic ambitions were no secret.

Over the last months, he showed impatience with Mr Hamdok's leadership, signalling that a strong ruler was needed to save the nation.

At a recent military-backed demonstration in the capital, Khartoum, protesters blamed Mr Hamdok for deteriorating living conditions - not helped by a blockade at the main port in the east which has led to shortages.

Sudanese democrats were alert to the army's stratagems, which seemed to be copied from the playbook that led to Abdul Fatah al-Sisi's military takeover in Egypt in 2013.

The Sudan Professionals Association and the multitude of neighbourhood committees that had orchestrated the non-violent protests which brought down the 30-year rule of President Omar al-Bashir in 2019 prepared for a new round of street demonstrations.

IMAGE: Source EPA. Caption, Protestors are determined not to allow the army to steal the revolution that saw Omar al-Bashir ousted in 2019

Foreign diplomats were also worried. US Special Envoy Jeffrey Feldman visited Khartoum at the weekend to press for agreement between the generals and the civilians. He left the city on Sunday with - he thought - a pact agreed.

The coup was staged hours later, leaving the Americans not only dismayed but outraged.

Making it clear that they had been deceived, the US administration has "paused" a $700m (£508m) financial assistance package.

An even bigger issue is the status of Sudan's debt relief package, recently negotiated by Mr Hamdok.

After two years of painful delays, international aid to salvage Sudan's economy was finally in prospect - and is now in jeopardy.

The African Union (AU), the United Nations, the East African regional body Igad and all of Sudan's Western donors have condemned the coup and called for a return to civilian rule.

The Arab League has also called for the constitutional formula to be respected. The grouping is usually in step with the Egyptian government, raising the question of how much Gen Burhan can count on the backing of Cairo.

Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE), which provided crucial financial aid to Gen Burhan in 2019, have stayed silent so far.

Their sympathies probably lie with the army strongman, but they will also know they cannot cover the costs of bailing out Sudan.

Gen Burhan was already the most powerful man in the country, his role legitimised by the August 2019 power-sharing deal between the military and the Forces for Freedom and Change (FFC), a loose coalition of civilian groups.

So why would he risk it all on a blatant power grab?

Commercial empires

According to that agreement, Gen Burhan was due to step down as chairman of the Sovereign Council next month.

At that point, a civilian chosen by the FFC would become the head of state, and the civilians in government would be better placed to push ahead with implementing key items on their agenda.

“Not only was the army commanding a vast share of the national budget, but military-owned companies operate with tax exemptions and often alleged corrupt contracting procedures" 

- Alex de Waal, Africa analyst

IMAGE: Source, GETTY

One is accountability for human rights violations. The government is committed in principle to handing over ex-President Bashir to the International Criminal Court (ICC).

His former lieutenants - including Gen Burhan and leader of the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces Gen Mohamed Hamdan "Hemeti" Dagolo - wanted him to be tried in Sudan and not in The Hague.

They have good reason to fear that Bashir will name them as culprits in the alleged atrocities meted out during the Darfur war.

Gen Burhan and his fellow officers have even more reason to fear that investigation into the massacre in Khartoum in June 2019 would also point the finger of blame in their direction.

It took place two months after Bashir's removal by the army, when peaceful protesters were calling for civilian rule.

Tackling corruption and implementing security sector reform were other agenda items that worried the generals.

Take the cumbersomely named "Commission for Dismantling the June 30 1989 Regime, Removal of Empowerment and Corruption, and Recovering Public Funds."

This was not only exposing and uprooting the network of companies owned by the Islamists forced out of power in 2019, but also the tentacles of the commercial empires owned by senior generals.

Mr Hamdok had become increasingly outspoken in his criticism of the military entanglement in the economy.

Not only was the army commanding a vast - and still-increasing - share of the national budget, but military-owned companies operate with tax exemptions and often allegedly corrupt contracting procedures.

Placing the army under proper civilian control was also a priority for the next stage of the transitional period.

Risk of rebel action

Gen Burhan is claiming he is keeping the transition to democracy on track - and has promised a technocratic civilian government and elections in two years.

Most Sudanese see this as an unconvincing façade.

The crackdown has dissolved the key trade unions and professional groups that organised the previous street protests. Internet and social media are largely shut down. Troops have fired on protesters, reportedly killing 10.

VIDEO: Media Caption, Demonstrators take to the streets of Khartoum to protest against the arrests

Street activists have overcome such clampdowns before and forced the army to back down, most notably in the aftermath of the June 2019 killings.

The generals must also face the reality that the civil war in parts of the country is not over.

A peace agreement last year brought several armed opposition groups into government - but no deal was yet reached with the biggest two rebel forces.

IMAGE: Source, AFP. Caption, Gen Burhan (L) and civilian PM Hamdok (R) were part of a power-sharing administration

In Darfur there is the Sudan Liberation Movement headed by Abdel Wahid al-Nur, and in the Nuba Mountains of South Kordofan there is the Sudan People's Liberation Movement-North, led by Abdel Aziz al-Hilu.

Both command popular support and have shown military resilience. Both were in peace talks with the government and had confidence in Mr Hamdok. The coup threatens renewed conflict.

With his unconstitutional seizure of power, Gen Burhan has taken a huge gamble.

He is offering no answers to Sudan's most pressing issues - the economy, democratisation and peace - and is risking turmoil and bloodshed at home and pariah status abroad.

In July 2019, following the army's violent crackdown on the democracy movement, the "quartet" of the US, the UK, Saudi Arabia and the UAE, working hand-in-glove with the AU, stepped in to press for a negotiated solution - which followed the next month.

A similar process may be needed to bring Sudan back from the brink. The problem is, after Monday, who can trust Gen Burhan to keep his word?

Alex de Waal is the executive director of the World Peace Foundation at the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University in the US.

More on the Sudan coup:

• IN PICTURES: Sudan coup protesters take to streets
• EXPLAINER: Sudan coup: What you need to know
• ANALYSIS: Sounding the alarm for Sudan’s democracy

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Source - BBC NEWS, view original at:  https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-59050473