UK has a key role to play in fighting for peace in Sudan

RIGHT NOW IN SUDAN, over five million people have been displaced and many thousands killed. Twenty-four million people – half the population – need humanitarian assistance, 15 million suffer from acute food insecurity and 19 million children are out of school. Recent analysis has shown that at least 68 villages in Darfur have been burnt to the ground by armed militia in the past few months.  The UK's APPG hopes that more can be done to stop the flow of arms to warring parties by putting greater pressure on their regional backers, enforcing the existing UN arms embargo on Darfur and extending it to the entire country. Read more in the following article.

From Politics Home, UK

By Vicky Ford MP @vickyford

Dated Thursday, 9 November 2023 - here is a copy in full:

The UK has a key role to play in fighting for peace in Sudan

Wreckage in Khartoum (Credit: Associated Press / Alamy Stock Photo)

October marked six months since the beginning of the war in Sudan and two years since the military coup that first dashed hopes of Sudan’s swift road to democracy. There is no clear winner and no end in sight.

Over five million people have been displaced and many thousands killed. Twenty-four million people – half the population – need humanitarian assistance, 15 million suffer from acute food insecurity and 19 million children are out of school. Of the $2.6bn required for humanitarian assistance, only $859m is available. 

Members of the [UK Govt] All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) for Sudan and South Sudan met with Liela Musa Medani, a Sudanese woman who has previously lived in the United Kingdom for over 20 years. She escaped from Khartoum in July but remains in touch with family members. Of the 50 households that used to live in her street, only four remain. 

For the past six months, they have faced killings and artillery shelling every single day. There is no food, and anyone who tries to transport food risks their life. There is no electricity, no water, no medicine and no humanitarian aid. The few people left in that once mighty city cannot leave. School buildings are now cemeteries. Girls have learned to disfigure themselves to try to avoid being raped.

Ethnic cleansing has returned to Darfur. Twenty years ago, during the genocide, between 300,000 and 400,000 people were killed, either directly in the conflict or indirectly. Recent analysis has shown that at least 68 villages in Darfur have been burnt to the ground by armed militia in the past few months.  

Since the war began, many of those forced to leave their homes have fled towards Chad and South Sudan. Over 320,000 Sudanese have crossed the border into Egypt, while many others are still stranded at the borders.

The UK has a key role to play due to our close historical relations with Sudan, the trust many Sudanese people still place in us and our role as a penholder in the United Nations Security Council. The significant Sudanese diaspora community in the UK includes NHS doctors. 

The UK has sanctioned some of the financial networks of the warring parties, sponsored a resolution at the UN Human Rights Council establishing an independent Commission of Enquiry to investigate alleged human rights violations and provided diplomatic and practical support to help pro-democracy civilians cohere around a common platform.

The UK should continue to press for an immediate ceasefire to facilitate humanitarian access, scale up life-saving support and support better co-ordination between different regional and international mediation initiatives. 

The APPG hopes that more can be done to stop the flow of arms to warring parties by putting greater pressure on their regional backers, enforcing the existing UN arms embargo on Darfur and extending it to the entire country. Targeted sanctions should also be extended to old regime loyalists who are calling for the continuation of the war.   

There are two potentially encouraging developments. The Jeddah talks, suspended since June, have resumed and Sudanese civilian leaders have met in Addis Ababa aiming to build a united Democratic Civilian Front to end the war, deliver vital humanitarian assistance and secure a path to democratic government. This may create momentum for further unification of democratic civilian voices. Nevertheless, the prospects for ending the war remain very uncertain.  

It is in the UK’s strategic interest to try to prevent the spread of terrorism, increased migration and the destabilisation of the wider region. Therefore it remains important that the UK continues to play an active diplomatic role and try to find a path to peace.

Vicky Ford, Conservative MP for Chelmsford, former minister for Africa and chair of the APPG for Sudan and South Sudan

View original: https://www.politicshome.com/thehouse/article/uk-key-role-play-fighting-peace-sudan

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Sudan FFC opens first meeting in Cairo to end conflict

THIS is Sudan’s Forces of Freedom and Change (FFC) first meeting since the outbreak of fighting aimed at forming an initiative to end the conflict in Sudan. It is one in a series of regional visits across Sudan’s neighbouring capitals including Kampala, N’Djamena, and Addis Ababa. Read more.

Report from Ahram Online
By Habiba Hamdy
Published Monday 24 Jul 2023 - here is a full copy:

Sudan FFC opens first meeting in Cairo to end Sudan war

Sudan’s Forces of Freedom and Change (FFC) opened its two-day meeting in Cairo on Monday in a bid to end the war in Sudan.

Members of the Forces of Freedom and Change (FFC) commence their planned meeting in Cairo on Monday

This is the FFC’s first meeting since the outbreak of the war aimed at forming an initiative to end the conflict in Sudan. It is one in a series of regional visits across Sudan’s neighbouring capitals including Kampala, N’Djamena, and Addis Ababa.

The present challenges necessitate stopping the war and restoring Sudan’s path towards civil democratic transition, the FFC said in a statement.

The FFC will consult with leaders of Sudanese society in Egypt on ways of building a new future for Sudan and resolving the issues facing the Sudanese people, the bloc added.

Malik Agar, deputy chairman of the Transitional Sovereignty Council, held a series of meetings and political consultations in Cairo recently. He also met with leaders of the FFC to discuss points of view and create national consensus on Sudanese issues.

It is imperative to stop any opportunity for the pre-2019 regime to turn the current conflict into a civil war, the FFC said.

The coalition called on the opposing Sudanese sides, the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) to reach a ceasefire in the Jeddah talks.

The FFC delegation expressed the need for a comprehensive and equitable political solution in Sudan that would establish a unified national army, democratic civilian rule, and sustainable peace.

The FFC meeting in Cairo is part of Egypt’s efforts to negotiate a peaceful end to the conflict.

Earlier in June Egypt hosted the Sudan's Neighbouring Countries' Summit to address the crisis.

Both the SAF and RSF welcomed the results of the meeting where it was agreed that Sudan’s neighboring countries will form a ministerial mechanism  comprising foreign ministers to address the conflict.

The FFC thanked Egypt for hosting the conference and affirmed Egypt’s pivotal role in helping to end the war in Sudan.

Forces of Freedom and Change

The FFC was formed in 2019 following the 2018 civilian protests and subsequent uprising. It consists of many political and rebel factions and formed the main opposition group in the revolution.

They participated in negotiations with the Transitional Military Council and previously signed the Constitutional Declaration that was meant to pave the road for democratic elections.  

The FFC faced multiple criticisms from other Sudanese groups such as the Democratic Bloc and the Sudanese Communist Party for signing the agreement which they believe did not fulfil the needs and demands of the Sudanese people.

Related

Multiple initiatives on Sudan

Sudan violence rages as paramilitaries deny Darfur war crimes

View original: https://english.ahram.org.eg/NewsContent/26/1259/505321/War-in-Sudan/War-in-Sudan/Sudan-FFC-opens-first-meeting-in-Cairo-to-end-Suda.aspx

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Darfur governor calls for Darfuris to take up arms

Report from BBC Live Reporting
Published on Friday 21 July 2023 at 8:48 BST - here is a full copy:

Sudan governor renews call for Darfuris to take up arms

BBC Monitoring

The world through its media

 

Reuters

Copyright: Reuters

Image caption: Tens of thousands of people have fled the conflict in Darfur to neighbouring Chad

Darfur governor and former rebel leader Minni Arko Minnawi renewed his call for civilians in the region to take up arms to defend themselves, saying the “current situation necessitates that”, Al Arabiya reported.

He said this administration was leading efforts to stop the fighting between the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) and the army, particularly in Darfur. The conflict is now in its fourth month.

Mr Minnawi has made similar remarks in the past, raising fears that Darfur, which is divided into five states, could descend into an all-out civil war amid growing ethnic tensions.

Elsewhere in the country, fierce fighting was reported between the army and the RSF in Khartoum, Omdurman and Bahri, the three cities that make up Sudan’s capital.

Eyewitnesses in Khartoum said the army carried out the "heaviest" airstrikes so far against RSF positions in several areas. The army said it killed 18 RSF fighters in clashes in Omdurman and Khartoum.

Renewed clashes were also reported in Nyala, the capital of South Darfur state, after a lull in fighting.

The fighting has persisted despite continuing indirect talks between the army and RSF representatives in the Saudi city of Jeddah.

Read more on Darfur:

'I saw bodies dumped in Darfur mass grave'

West Darfur governor killed after genocide claim

Click here to view original. 

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Kenya closes embassy in Sudan

Report at The EastAfrican - https://www.theeastafrican.co.ke
By Aggrey Mutambo
Dated Tuesday June 06 2023 - full copy:

Kenya closes embassy in Khartoum as violence worsens

Kenya’s Foreign and Diaspora Affairs Cabinet Secretary Alfred Mutua. Photo | Lucy Wanjiru | NMG

Kenya says it has shut down its embassy in Khartoum to protect staff, in what could close the door on any further evacuation for civilians and signal bad days ahead in the Sudan war.

Kenya’s Foreign Affairs Principal Secretary Korir Sing’oei said on Monday that Nairobi’s diplomats in Khartoum were facing safety risks, forcing the government to close the embassy, and upending Kenya’s initial policy of staying around to help pursue peace.

“We continue to receive disturbing news of the targeting of diplomatic officials by armed groups in Khartoum, Sudan,” he wrote on Twitter.

“[The] Kenya Mission in Khartoum which had remained open to facilitate evacuation of any Kenyans still in the country is now closed,” he added.

After war broke out on April 15, Kenya said it had helped rescue as many as 900 nationals plus those of other countries trapped in Khartoum. But officials said they would not close down the embassy as part of efforts to stay in contact with warring parties; the Sudan Armed Forces (SAF) and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF).

At a press briefing with his host Antony Blinken in Washington, Kenya’s Foreign Affairs and Diaspora Cabinet Secretary Alfred Mutua had said Kenya’s embassy would remain open as part of regional efforts to have parties descalate.

“As an African continent and the AU and intergovernmental organisation called IGAD, we are trying to find solutions for Sudan.  I know you’ve pulled your teams out.  Kenya is not pulling its diplomatic offices.  We’re not shutting them down because we want to have a presence as we negotiate,” Mutua had said on April 24.

This move may both reflect the escalating violence in Khartoum and the failure to have parties, at least respect a ceasefire. There have been six ceasefire deals between the SAF led by Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and his nemesis Mohamed Daglo Hemedti. In all occasions, fighting continued. 

By Monday, UN agencies estimated that more than 1000 people had been killed and over 800,000 displaced, either internally or forced to neighbouring countries for refuge.

Last week, a mediation project pursued by Saudi Arabia and the US, and known as the Jeddah Talks, was suspended after the US labelled the parties unserious to end the war.

On Monday, however, mediators in Jeddah said they were still engaging parties to see how to resume.

Despite the formal pause on June 3 of the five-day ceasefire agreement, a statement from Jeddah said, “facilitators continue to engage them daily.”

“Those discussions are focused on facilitating humanitarian assistance and reaching agreement on near-term steps the parties must take before the Jeddah talks resume.

“Facilitators stand ready to resume formal talks and remind the parties that they must implement their obligations under the May 11 Jeddah Declaration of Commitment to Protect the Civilians of Sudan.”

Saudi Arabia’s influence on the warring parties in Sudan was always seen as a crucial tool to help end the war. But the fact that fighting continued even after ceasefire has illustrated a possible breakdown in command structures.

Back in April, Dr Mutua blamed unnamed Middle East countries for taking sides, and fueling the war.

“We have been quite concerned by some of our friends in the Middle East as (inaudible) Russia and others who for a long time have been friendly to either one or the other side.  And we are just saying that at this particular time, it is not a time to take sides in a war,” he said on April 24.

“We care about Sudan.  As part of the African Union, we want to silence the guns in Sudan, want to find an African solution to African problems with the support of our friends.  But we can’t effectively do that if we are talking to groups that are being strengthened every day by the parties who believe that all they need to do is to fight to the end.”

Last week, the African Union launched its ‘roadmap’ to attempt peace in Sudan by involving more political and civilian movements. It is yet to gain traction.

View original: https://www.theeastafrican.co.ke/tea/news/east-africa/kenya-shuts-down-embassy-in-khartoum-as-violence-worsens-4259588

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_________________________________

Cartoon 

By Omar Dafallah

Published at Radio Dabanga - dabangasudan.org

Dated June 2019

Saudi Arabia want El Burhan (the military) in power in Sudan

Credit: June 2019 cartoon by Omar Dafallah published by Radio Dabanga

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Gunfire adds to violations near end of Sudan truce

IN SIX WEEKS of urban warfare, more than 1,800 people have been killed, according to the Armed Conflict Location and Event Data Project.

Nearly 1.4 million people have been displaced both within Sudan and to neighbouring countries, according to the United Nations.

A record 25 million people, more than half the population, are now in need of humanitarian assistance to survive, according to the UN.

Read more in report by AFP dated Sunday 28 May 2023:

Gunfire adds to violations near end of breached Sudan truce

A looted petrol station in southern Khartoum. (AFP)

The exodus continues -- people flee with their belongings from Khartoum's twin city of Omdurman. (AFP)

The truce has allowed some to venture out, including this man and boy in Omdurman. (AFP)

Full story: https://www.modernghana.com/news/1233858/gunfire-adds-to-violations-near-end-of-breached.html

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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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