Sudan: SAF airstrikes on Khartoum & Madani kill 11+

From Radio Dabanga
Dated Sun, 07 Jan 2024; 12:24 Khartoum /Wad Madani - full copy:

At least 11 dead as airstrikes on Sudan capital and Wad Madani continue

Missiles collected in a neighbourhood of Omdurman (Photo: Social media)

The Sudanese air force continue to attack sites of the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) in Khartoum and Wad Madani in the past few days. Various neighbourhoods of greater Khartoum were hit by barrel bombs targeting RSF sites yesterday. In Wad Madani, capital of El Gezira, at least 11 people were killed as a result of aerial bombardments on Friday.

Several areas of Khartoum state witnessed intense air strikes yesterday. “Warplanes and drones flew over Khartoum, in particular in the eastern and southern parts of the city, dropping a number of barrel bombs,” residents reported.

The RSF used “ground missiles and mortars” in the vicinity of the General Command of the Sudan Armed Forces (SAF) in the centre of the city, and the Signal Corps in Khartoum North, they said.

The neighbourhoods of old Omdurman witnessed an exchange of artillery shelling by both sides on Friday. The clashes continued until Saturday morning.

‘Intermittently’

The resistance committees of Wad Madani, reported yesterday that at least 11 people, including six minors, were killed by bombs in the El Dabbagha neighbourhood on Friday.

“It is difficult in reaching the location of the casualties due to the complex security situation in El Dabbagha, El Riyadh, El Gadisiya, and the Hantoub neighbourhoods,” they stated.

The air force intermittently bombed the capital of El Gezira and its surrounding areas since the RSF took control of the city on December 18.

Since the war between the RSF and SAF broke out on April 15 last year, more than 12,000 people have been killed, and approximately 7.2 million people were displaced from their homes, half of whom are children, since making it the largest displacement crisis globally.

View original: https://www.dabangasudan.org/en/all-news/article/at-least-11-killed-as-airstrikes-on-sudan-capital-and-wad-madani-continue

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President Putin visits UAE & Saudi Arabia Dec 6 before meeting next day in Russia with Iran president

Report from BBC News

By George Wright

Dated Wednesday, 06 December 2023 - excerpts:

Russian President Putin lands in UAE

Image Source, Reuters. Image caption, 

Vladimir Putin was welcomed by the UAE's foreign minister

Mr Putin told UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan that "our relations have reached unprecedented levels".

Trade and oil will be on the agenda in the UAE, which a Kremlin statement said is "Russia's main economic partner in the Arab world".

The Russian president is scheduled to travel to Saudi Arabia later on Wednesday to meet with the kingdom's de facto ruler, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.

The two leaders will "consider ways to promote de-escalation" in the conflict between Israel and Hamas, the Kremlin said.

Conflicts in Syria, Yemen, and Sudan will also be discussed in both the UAE and Saudi Arabia, Russian presidential assistant Yuri Ushakov stated.

Kremlin officials have also announced that Mr Putin will meet with Iranian President Ibrahim Raisi on Thursday to discuss the war in Gaza.

Full story: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-67636648

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Related report 

From Oil Price dot com

By RFE/RL staff 
Dated Wed, 05 Dec 2023, 10:00 AM CST - here is a copy in full:

Putin Makes Rare Trip Abroad With Visit To Saudi Arabia, UAE

• In a rare trip abroad as an international arrest warrant hangs over him, Russian President Vladimir Putin will visit Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates on December 6.

• The Kremlin said on December 5 that bilateral relations and the Palestinian-Israeli conflict will be discussed during the meetings.

• Following the one-day trip, Putin will return home and meet Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi, the Kremlin said.

In a rare trip abroad as an international arrest warrant hangs over him, Russian President Vladimir Putin will visit Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates on December 6 before heading home for a meeting with Iran's president the next day.

The Kremlin said on December 5 that bilateral relations and the Palestinian-Israeli conflict will be discussed during the meetings, while issues concerning the oil market, "are also always on the agenda."

The International Criminal Court (ICC) in March issued arrest warrants for Putin and his children's commissioner, Maria Lvova-Belova, for being responsible for the deportation of Ukrainian children to Russia -- a war crime under international legislation.

While Putin did not make many foreign trips before the warrant was issued, he has curtailed his travel even more since.

He did not attend the G20 summit in India in September, and has limited his recent trips to countries such as China and states of the former Soviet Union.

With the warrant, Putin became the third serving head of state to be targeted in an arrest warrant from the ICC, the world's permanent war crimes tribunal, along with Sudan's Omar al-Bashir and Libya's Muammar Qaddafi.

The Kremlin did not give details of Putin's agenda, but the online news outlet Shot, which first reported the trip, quoted Kremlin foreign policy aide Yury Ushakov as saying the Russian leader would travel first to the U.A.E. before heading on to Saudi Arabia, where talks would include a meeting with Crown Prince Muhammad bin Salman.

Putin and the prince have developed close ties over the years as they worked to form a group of leading oil producers, now known as OPEC+, in late 2016. The group has worked to support the price of oil, and last week announced voluntary supply cuts.

Following the one-day trip, Putin will return home and meet Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi, the Kremlin said.

Putin visited Iran in July 2022, while Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov visited Tehran in October.

Since Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, Iran has widely been accused of delivering cheap but effective kamikaze drones to Moscow.

While Iran denies the allegations, saying it only sold drones to Moscow before the war started, U.S. officials have repeatedly accused Tehran of supplying Shahed-136 Iranian drones that Russia has used to destroy civilian infrastructure in Ukraine. There has been evidence of Iranian drones rebranded as Russian Geran-2s being used on the battlefield.

And as the two countries have increased military-technical cooperation, Iran's Defense Ministry has routinely showcased its ballistic, cruise, anti-tank, and air-defense missile systems to Russian officials.

This has raised fears Moscow and Tehran could try to expand their existing arms dealing to include more advanced weaponry, know-how, and technology that could boost both Russia's war effort in Ukraine and Iran's ballistic-missile and drone programs.

By RF/ERL

View original:

https://oilprice.com/Geopolitics/Middle-East/Putin-Makes-Rare-Trip-Abroad-With-Visit-To-Saudi-Arabia-UAE.html

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Saudi Arabia signs major order for Turkish drones

Report from Reuters

By Aziz El Yaakoubi

Published on Tuesday July 18, 2023 at 11:29 AM GMT+1 - excerpt:

Saudi Arabia buys Turkish drones during Erdogan's visit

RIYADH, July 18 (Reuters) - Saudi Arabia agreed on Tuesday to buy Turkish drones in the biggest defence contract in Turkey's history as President Tayyip Erdogan reaped the benefits of his diplomatic push to repair ties with Gulf powers and help Ankara's struggling economy.

Erdogan and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman attended the signing ceremony between Turkish defence firm Baykar and the Saudi defence ministry, Saudi state news agency SPA reported.

Full story: https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/saudi-arabia-turkey-sign-mous-energy-defence-other-fields-2023-07-18/

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Defense News - 18 Jul 2023

Saudi Arabia signs major order for Turkish drones

Erdogan will also visit Qatar and the UAE during his Gulf visit.

https://www.defensenews.com/global/mideast-africa/2023/07/18/saudi-arabia-signs-major-order-for-turkish-drones/

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SAF says drone attack by RSF kills 14 in Khartoum

Report from China View - www.chinaview.cn
By Xinhua
Published Thursday 20 July 2023 - here is a full copy:

Sudan army says drone attack by paramilitary forces kills 14 in capital

KHARTOUM, July 19 (Xinhua) -- The Sudanese Armed Forces announced that 14 people were killed in a drone attack launched by the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) in the capital Khartoum on Wednesday.

"The rebel militia targeted citizens who gathered to greet our forces in the Al-Azouzab area with a drone, killing 14 civilians and wounding 15 others," the army said in a statement.

The Sudanese army said it would continue combing the areas for the RSF stations in Khartoum, according to the statement.

Sudan has been witnessing deadly clashes between the Sudanese army and the RSF in Khartoum and other areas since April 15, resulting in over 3,000 deaths and more than 6,000 injuries, according to figures released by the Sudanese Health Ministry. Enditem

View original: http://www.china.org.cn/china/Off_the_Wire/2023-07/20/content_93169441.htm

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Sudan's military fights to keep Wadi Saeedna airbase

Hat tip with thanks to Cameron Hudson for this toys for the boys' war pr0n. I wonder if this technology, combined with satellite imagery, is the "international-supported ceasefire monitoring mechanism" being hinted at.

A recent video reportedly of a SAF drone strike on a RSF target. I was not under the impression that SAF had armed drones. Can others confirm the veracity of this video and who may have provided them drones? Could be a new turning point despite just signing Jeddah deal. pic.twitter.com/OOzH39ak9R

— Cameron Hudson (@_hudsonc) May 21, 2023

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MEANWHILE, SAF's fighting to keep Wadi Saeedna airbase. Read more.

Report at BBC News

By Zeinab Mohammed Salih, Khartoum

Dated Sunday 21 May 2023 - full copy:

Sudan conflict: Army fights to keep Wadi Saeedna airbase, residents say

Sudan's army is resisting an attempt by paramilitaries to advance towards its main airbase near the capital Khartoum, residents have said.

The airfield is used by the military to carry out air strikes on the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), and was also used by foreign governments to evacuate their nationals early in the conflict.

The fighting comes despite the announcement of a new seven-day truce.

Previous ceasefires have collapsed within minutes of being called.

A US-Saudi statement said the latest truce would come into effect on Monday evening, and would be different as it provides for a "ceasefire monitoring mechanism".

The US and Saudi Arabia have been brokering talks between the army and the RSF in the Saudi city of Jeddah for the past two weeks in an attempt to end the conflict that broke out on 15 April.

Most people I spoke to in Khartoum said a ceasefire would hold only if international monitors - backed by United Nations (UN) peacekeepers - are deployed.

In a sign of their lack of confidence in the latest ceasefire deal, bus loads of residents are continuing to flee Khartoum and its sister cities across the River Nile, Bahri and Omdurman, as there has been no let-up in the fighting.

RSF fighters in about 20 trucks are positioned east of the Nile, and are trying to cross a bridge to reach the Wadi Saeedna airfield.

The Sudanese military has retaliated by firing heavy artillery.

The battle has been going on for several days, but it has escalated.

"It feels like doomsday from early this [Sunday] morning. I think they will torture us until this ceasefire comes into effect," said a resident in Bahri's Khojalab suburb.

The military cannot afford to lose control of the airfield, as it is key to its strategy of pounding the RSF from the air as it fights to regain control of Khartoum and the other two cities.

An air strike also took place in Omdurman on Sunday, and explosions could be heard in its southern areas.

Earlier, the US State Department acknowledged previous failed attempts at brokering peace in Sudan, but said there was a key difference this time.

"Unlike previous ceasefires, the agreement reached in Jeddah was signed by the parties and will be supported by a US-Saudi and international-supported ceasefire monitoring mechanism," it said, without giving more details.

Sudan's military said it was committed to the agreement. The RSF has not commented.

The deal also allows for the delivery of humanitarian aid.

Stocks of food, money and essentials have fast declined and aid groups repeatedly complained of being unable to provide sufficient assistance in Khartoum.

Both the regular army and the RSF have been urged to allow the distribution of humanitarian aid, restore essential services and withdraw forces from hospitals.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Twitter: "It is past time to silence the guns and allow unhindered humanitarian access.

"I implore both sides to uphold this agreement - the eyes of the world are watching."

View original: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-65662939

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