Civil Front to Stop the War and Restore Democracy in Sudan concludes Addis meetings, contacts SLM-AW

NOTE from Sudan Watch Editor: The following report, written in Arabic, was sent to me today by a Sudanese man living and working in England, UK. As he is keen to see peace in Sudan I have used Google translate to document the report here in English. A report by Sudan Tribune, also copied here below, explains who is behind the 'Civil Front'. It is heartening to see former Prime Minister Hamdok's name cited in the Sudan Tribune's report. 

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Report from Al Taghyeer -  altaghyeer.info/en/
Dated 20 September 2023 - here is a full copy (using Google translate):

Civil Front concludes Addis meetings and takes steps to stop war in Sudan

The components of the Civil Front to Stop the War and Restore Democracy in Sudan agreed on the importance of strengthening the efforts of all forces calling for stopping the war and restoring democracy, and the need to coordinate between them as soon as possible.

Khartoum: Change

The Civil Front to Stop the War and Restore Democracy in Sudan concluded meetings of the Coordination and Communication Authority held on September 17 and 18 in the Ethiopian capital, Addis Ababa, and issued a final statement on the deliberations and decisions.

According to the statement issued on Tuesday, the meeting stressed the need to redouble efforts to confront the plans of the remnants of the former regime calling for the continuation of the war, and discussed the importance of strengthening the efforts of all forces calling for stopping the war and restoring democracy and the need to coordinate between them as soon as possible.

He announced the formation of a committee to communicate with all democratic civil forces to accelerate these efforts, and the meeting adhered to the political vision of the components of the Civil Front.

"Change" publishes the text of the final statement:

Civil Front to Stop the War and Restore Democracy

Final communiqué of the meetings of the Coordination and Communication Authority

The meetings of the Coordination and Liaison Committee of the Civil Front to Stop the War and Restore Democracy, which lasted for two days (September 17 and 18), concluded in Addis Ababa, the Ethiopian capital, these meetings discussed the poor humanitarian situation caused by the war, and the political efforts exerted to work to stop it by building the broadest civil front of democratic forces opposed to it.

At the outset, the Civil Front paid tribute to those who lost their lives in this war, and expressed its full solidarity with the injured, displaced and refugee victims.

It declared its full condemnation of the gross violations of human rights, which varied between killings, occupation of homes and hospitals, looting of property, arrests, kidnappings, rape and many heinous crimes committed by the Rapid Support Forces, as well as all violations of killing, aerial bombardment of civilians and arbitrary arrests by the armed forces, and called for a transparent investigation and accountability for all those involved.

The participants stressed the need to redouble efforts to confront the plans of the remnants of the former regime who call for the continuation of this war, use it to demonize the revolution and liquidate its forces, and spread hate speech and ethnic and regional division.

They also discussed the importance of strengthening the efforts made by all civil forces calling for stopping the war and restoring democracy, and stressed the need for coordination between them as soon as possible, and a committee was formed from all categories of the front to communicate with all civil democratic forces to accelerate these efforts and reach the widest civil front that works to end the war, and rebuild the state on the basis of the principles, values and goals of the glorious December revolution.

The meeting adhered to the political vision of the components of the Civil Front, which was contained in the founding statement of the Front on the twenty-seventh of last April, and work to develop it with the rest of the civil democratic forces in response to the new reality produced by the fifteenth of April war and its repercussions.

They agreed to establish a national mechanism for reparations and compensation, including the relevant authorities, to account for all the damage caused by the war, and stressed that any political solution to end it must not fall under the principle of fair and equitable compensation for all those who have been harmed and harmed by this damned war.

They also appreciated the efforts of humanitarian aid workers from local, regional and international institutions and organizations, especially the emergency rooms in Khartoum State and all cities and regions of Sudan, who work in very complex conditions, stressing the need to ensure the delivery of aid to those who deserve it.

In conclusion, it was agreed to activate the organizational, media and humanitarian work to achieve the goals of the interim and future front.

Coordination and Communication Authority

19 September 2023

Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

View original: https://www.altaghyeer.info/ar/2023/09/19/الجبهة-المدنية-تختتم-اجتماعات-أديس/

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Related report

From Sudan Tribune.com

Dated Thursday, 13 October 2023 - here is a full copy:

Sudanese anti-war civilian forces reach out to Darfur holdout group

Image: FFC leaders meet Ugandan president on July 3, 2023

October 13, 2023 (ADDIS ABABA) – A prominent leader of the Forces for Freedom and Change (FFC) revealed that the Civil Front to Stop the War and Restore Democracy forces have been in contact with the Sudan Liberation Movement led by Abdel Wahid Nur (SLM-AW) to join this collective effort.

Since July of this year, political forces, civil society groups, and some armed movements that are parties to the Juba peace agreement have been engaged in discussions to establish a broad civil coalition. The purpose of this coalition is to exert pressure on the warring factions to cease hostilities and revive the path toward democratic transition.

Nur al-Din Babikir, a member of the FFC leadership and spokesman for the Sudanese Congress Party, told Sudan Tribune that there is coordination between the Front, the SLM-AW, the initiatives led by former Prime Minister Abdallah Hamdok and former Sudanese ambassador to the United States Nur al-Din Satti. He added that the purpose of these consultations is to convene a founding conference for the Civil Front.

Babikir stated that the conference’s agenda is centred on halting the conflict by forming a coalition capable of compelling both sides involved in the conflict to cease hostilities. Subsequently, this would pave the way for a political process to restore the civilian-led democratic transition through an agreed project.

He further confirmed that the FFC also consults with IGAD, neighbouring countries, and other regional actors to unify their initiatives. He stressed that these efforts have made some progress towards achieving a ceasefire despite the lack of commitment from both parties.

Also, he announced that the United States and Saudi Arabia are holding consultations to resume the Jeddah process to end the war in the near future, starting with the cessation of hostilities, the establishment of humanitarian corridors to provide aid to the war-afflicted civilians, and a subsequent political process that ends the war.

He pointed out that the Front includes many Sudanese figures representing various bodies, the FFC, and nine coordination committees for Resistance Committees, civil society initiatives, and armed groups.

The SLM-AW rejects the Juba Peace Agreement and refuses to participate in any peace process to end the war in Darfur. In return, the Movement calls for a national conference to discuss issues of identity, wealth distribution, and justice and social justice in the country.

It’s worth noting that the SLM-AW has rejected the Juba Peace Agreement and remains unwilling to participate in any peace process to end the conflict in Darfur. Instead, the group calls for a national conference to address matters related to identity, wealth distribution, justice, and social justice within the country.

The FFC-initiated civilian front has not announced any contact with the Democratic Bloc groups, which includes the SLM led by Minni Minnawi and the Justice and Equality Movement of Gibril Ibrahim.

A severe conflict has been ongoing between the Sudanese army and the Rapid Support Forces since April 15 of this year. This has been accompanied by grave violations against civilians, including killings, sexual violence, arrests, forced displacement, and military airstrikes. (ST)

View original: https://sudantribune.com/article278299/

[Ends]

Sudan: Darfur war leader Abdelwahid El Nur calls for revolution to overthrow Burhan's military coup

NOTE from Sudan Watch Editor:  It is difficult to imagine where Sudan and South Sudan would be without Mr Abdelwahid El Nur (pictured below). Putting a complicated situation simply, he and other armed rebels including JEM started the Darfur war in 2003. They have much blood on their hands. 

The photo caption does not indicate where or when the photo was taken. Since shortly after starting the Darfur war he has been living in luxury in Paris and travels widely even as far as Israel. Once in a while he pops up in Sudan on rare occasions when the security situation is unusually calm. 

In the photo he is wearing an expensive jacket. His face still doesn't show any worry lines, guilt, angst, suffering, poverty or malnutrition. He is from Darfur. Years ago he used to brag about the people from Darfur being his people. Until fifteen years ago he had the support of many Sudanese people in and from Darfur. I suspect most of them gave up on him while he sat enjoying himself in Parisian bars and hotels. Maybe he's too shy to visit Darfur incase the world will see how little support he has nowadays. 

He once said he aims to be the president of Sudan. As stated many times here at Sudan Watch, I believe he is too cowardly and not intelligent or skilled enough to preside over Sudan or anything else. In the report below by Netherlands-based Radio Dabanga one can see how he states the obvious and uses the words and ideas other people have already thought of and publicised for years. He's an opportunist, not a leader. 

When he uses his brain and his own words and ideas he sounds like an idiot. I can't recall reading news that explains how he is funded and manages to travel abroad while living safely in Paris. He directed the Darfur war using a satellite phone while sitting in a comfortable armchair in a Parisian hotel. 

If he made sense and was a genuinely brave freedom fighter with realistic and good intentions not only for the people of Darfur but for all Sudanese people, he could be someone to respect and admire. Frankly speaking, seeing his face makes me feel sick. I've observed how much death and destruction his idiotic thinking and actions have caused. Deep down he must know he's responsible for the suffering of millions of Sudanese people. I find it odd that journalists fail to explain how he lives and how he is funded.

The following report respectfully gives him a platform from which to pontificate his nonsense, none of which he deserves. In my view, he's a dodgy character and a deluded chancer. He reminds me of Tintin.

Copy of news report at and by Radio Dabanga.org

Dated 4 November 2021 - KHARTOUM

Sudan rebel leader Abdelwahid El Nur calls for ‘comprehensive popular revolution to overthrow coup’

Photo: The head of the mainstream Sudan Liberation Movement (SLM-AW), Abdelwahid El Nur (File photo)

The head of the mainstream Sudan Liberation Movement (SLM-AW), Abdelwahid El Nur, has called for “a comprehensive popular revolution in order to overthrow the coup and restore Prime Minister Abdullah Hamdok”, and calling on the resistance committees “not to accept any compromise”.

In an interview with Radio Dabanga broadcast today, El Nur asserts that “the salvation of Sudan lies in the restructuring of the military institution,” and called for the reintegration of all military and paramilitary forces into a single unified army, with a combat doctrine aimed at defending the citizens and protecting the land and the constitution, and non-interference in politics.

‘The army’s intervention to suppress the demonstrations is an attempt to turn the peaceful uprising into a bloody one…’

He considers the army’s intervention to suppress the demonstrations as “an attempt to turn the peaceful uprising into a bloody one,” stressing the need to adhere to peace. He stressed that the people’s will is stronger than all weapons.

El Nur accused the military institution of committing crimes in the south, Darfur, the Nuba Mountains, the Blue Nile and the East since 56, and said that it had committed genocide, ethnic cleansing and crimes against humanity and caused the displacement of millions, and created militias and mujahideen.

‘Sudan possesses the human and economic resources that can rescue it from the current situation…’

On the Sudanese-Sudanese dialogue initiative adopted by the movement, the rebel leader said that the initiative aims to reach the state of institutions and form a unified national army. He stressed the need to adhere to PM Abdallah Hamdok’s government “to move from a state of obstruction to future horizons”, explaining that Sudan possesses the human and economic resources that can rescue it from the current situation through a national project. He called for giving priority to the interests of the Sudanese people, dealing with foreign countries according to their positions, and helping Sudan to get out of the crisis in order to reach a civil state and a civil government.

View original: https://www.dabangasudan.org/en/all-news/article/sudan-rebel-leader-abdelwahid-el-nur-calls-for-comprehensive-popular-revolution-to-overthrow-coup

Sudan allows former foe Israel to fly over its territory - Gaddafi said Israel, not Bashir, behind Darfur war

Sudan allows former foe Israel to fly over its territory
Report by BBC World Service

Dated 17 February 2020

BBC Image credit and caption: Nur Photo

The first Israeli plane crossed Sudan on Saturday on its way to South America (file photo)

Israel says it has begun flying commercial aircraft through Sudanese airspace under an agreement with the Khartoum government.

The Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, told a group of visiting US Jewish leaders that the first Israeli plane crossed Sudan on Saturday, bound for South America.

He said the new air corridor would cut the flying time on the route by three hours.

Sudan said in early Ferbruary that it had given initial approval for Israeli planes to fly over its territory.

Mr Netanyahu said Israel was discussing rapid normalisation of ties with its former foe.

Sudan, which has close ties with the Palestinians, has stopped short of referring to improving ties with Israel.

View Original: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/topics/cq23pdgvgm8t/sudan

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Copy of Reuters report from the archives of Sudan Watch 2009:

Gaddafi says Israel, not Bashir, behind Darfur war

Report from Reuters

Written by Lamine Ghanmi; Editing by Kevin Liffey 

Dated 24 February 2009 / 6:43 PM / 11 YEARS AGO

TRIPOLI, Feb 24 (Reuters) - Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi, the current African Union president, on Tuesday accused "foreign forces" including Israel of being behind the Darfur conflict.

Judges from the International Criminal Court are due to announce on March 4 whether they will issue a warrant for the arrest of Sudanese President Omar Hassan al-Bashir over allegations that he masterminded genocide in Sudan’s Darfur region. U.N. diplomats have told Reuters the warrant will be issued.

But Gaddafi, addressing a meeting on ways to expand cooperation between the United Nations and African Union, urged the Court to stop its proceedings against Bashir:

"Why do we have to hold President Bashir or the Sudanese government responsible when the Darfur problem was caused by outside parties, and Tel Aviv (Israel), for example, is behind the Darfur crisis?"

Gaddafi suggested, without presenting any evidence, that the Israeli military was among those stoking the conflict:

"It is not a secret. We have found evidence proving clearly that foreign forces are behind the Darfur problem and are fanning its fire," Gaddafi said, according to the Libyan state news agency Jana.

"We discovered that some of the main leaders of the Darfur rebels have opened offices in Tel Aviv and hold meetings with the military there to add fuel to the conflict fire."

Mostly non-Arab rebels took up arms against Sudan’s government in 2003, accusing it of neglecting the Darfur region. Khartoum mobilised mostly Arab militias to crush the rebellion.

International experts say the fighting has killed 200,000 people and uprooted 2.7 million. Sudan’s government denies any genocide, saying that 10,000 have been killed and that Western media exaggerate the conflict.

Gaddafi himself has made a number of attempts to broker peace talks between Darfur rebels and the Sudanese government. 

View Original: https://www.reuters.com/article/idUSLO50752
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FURTHER READING
From the archives of Sudan Watch:

August 17, 2019

Ex-Israel spy admits lobbying US on behalf of Sudan military council

https://sudanwatch.blogspot.com/2019/08/dickens-madson-lobbyists-dont-know.html

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May 27, 2009

Suspected Israeli airstrike on a convoy in Sudan January 2009 killed 119 people

https://sudanwatch.blogspot.com/2009/05/suspected-israeli-airstrike-on-convoy.html

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April 13, 2009

Envoy to Tehran stresses Mossad's role in Sudan's insecurity

https://sudanwatch.blogspot.com/2009/04/sudans-envoy-to-tehran-stresses-mossads.html

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April 05, 2009

Africa Confidential heard that another arms convoy was moving north near Red Sea coast and Egyptian forces were moving to Sudan border to block it

https://sudanwatch.blogspot.com/2009/04/africa-confidential-heard-that-another.html

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March 26, 2009

Unidentified aircraft destroyed suspected arms convoy in E. Sudan last January (Update 4)

https://sudanwatch.blogspot.com/2009/03/unidentified-aircraft-destroyed.html

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February 28, 2009

AU Chairman: Hard Evidence Proves Israel behind Darfur Conflict

https://sudanwatch.blogspot.com/2009/02/au-chairman-hard-evidence-proves-israel.html

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February 18, 2009

SLM's Abdel Wahid al-Nur visits Israel - 

Sudanese rebel leader meets with Israeli spies

https://sudanwatch.blogspot.com/2009/02/slms-abdel-wahid-al-nur-visits-israel.html

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February 03, 2009

Israeli owner of MV Faina pays $3.2m ransom - Its cargo destined for Darfur? JEM has received heavy military logistical support from Israel?

https://sudanwatch.blogspot.com/2009/02/israeli-owner-of-mv-faina-pays-32m.html

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October 31, 2008

Ukraine says military hardware carried by hijacked Ukrainian ship MV Faina had been officially sold to Kenya (Update 1)

https://sudanwatch.blogspot.com/2008/10/ukraine-says-military-hardware-carried.html

Sudan: PM Hamdok meets French President Macron and Darfur war SLA rebel Abdelwahid Nur in France

NOTE from Sudan Watch editor: Here is news of a 30 Sep 2019 meeting between Sudan's Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok and Mr Abdelwahid Nur, leader of Darfur war rebel group Sudanese Liberation Army. Mr Nur helped lead the SLA, one of two rebel groups (the other was JEM) that started the Darfur war in 2003 costing 300,000-400,000 Darfuri lives and unimaginable pain and suffering for millions of others. 

The meeting took place in France where, for the past 15 years Mr Nur has sheltered, enjoyed good food, beer and five star hotels. Nur, now aged 50, led and directed the Darfur war by satellite phone from the comfort and safety of an armchair in Paris, France where he still lives in self imposed exile. He fled to France soon after the Darfur war. He is too scared to return to Darfur and face the dwindling support of 'his people'.

In my view he is an arrogant self-serving dim-wit who spouts nonsense and has delusions of becoming president of Sudan. He once set up an office in Israel. He is infuriating. So is France's interest in Chad and the Sudans oil. See 2005 report 'South Sudan: French energy giant Total in oil talks with SPLM/A over White Nile' https://sudanwatch.blogspot.com/2005/03/south-sudan-french-energy-giant-total.html. 

Photo: Darfur rebel Abdelwahid Nur, leader of Sudanese Liberation Army (SLA-AW) 

Credit: Sudan Tribune.com report 31 Aug 2019 ‘SLM’s al-Nur calls for referendum on Sudan’s transitional authority before peace talks’

News report from MSN.com

By Agence France-Presse (AFP) - www.afp.com

Published: Tuesday 01 October 2019

Title: Sudan PM meets Darfur rebel chief in 'essential' step to peace: Macron

Sudan's prime minister has met a senior Darfur rebel leader living in France, President Emmanuel Macron said Monday, hailing an "essential step" for peace in the troubled east African nation.

Photo: © Bertrand GUAY Sudan's Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok visited French President Emmanuel Macron at the Elysee Palace

"We facilitated talks that Prime Minister (Abdalla) Hamdok had yesterday with Abdulwahid Nur, who is in our country," Macron said at a press conference with Hamdok after discussions in Paris.

"I think the step taken yesterday is an essential step," he added. "The Sudanese deserve to finally live in peace and security."

Nur, who is exiled in France, leads the Sudanese Liberation Army (SLA/AW), which does not recognise Hamdok's government, which is tasked with leading the country's transition to civilian rule.

Hamdok said that his meeting with Nur, which he had expected to last 30 minutes, went on for nearly three hours and involved "very profound exchanges".

"We discussed the roots of the Sudanese crisis and possibilities for a solution and... we are going to lay the first stones for this edifice of peace," he said.

Sudan's western region of Darfur fell into widespread conflict in 2003 when ethnic minority rebels took up arms against the Arab-dominated government of Omar al-Bashir, who was toppled in April this year.

Tens of thousands of people have been killed in the years-long conflict in Darfur and more than two million displaced, according to the United Nations.

"I accepted to meet the new prime minister not as a prime minister, but as a political figure" in the new political landscape, Nur told AFP on Monday.

"There is no peace, there is no accountability, there is no free press -- the killing in Darfur, in the Nuba mountains, in the Blue Nile is continuing," he said.

"All of us we want to sit together in a partnership country, in a partnership of equal citizenship rights, to identify all together what are the problems of Sudan and what is the solution," he said.

However Nur, 50, stressed that "we are not recognising the military council and we are not recognising the new government".

Hamdok's visit to France was his first to Europe as prime minister, and comes after France's foreign minister Jean-Yves Le Drian visited Khartoum earlier this month.

Macron reiterated Monday that France was ready to help rebuild Sudan's economy, announcing a 15 million euro ($16.3 million) aid package and plans for a donors' conference in the coming weeks.

View original: https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/sudan-pm-meets-darfur-rebel-chief-in-essential-step-to-peace-macron/ar-AAI4z6Y

Sudan: Abdel Wahid al-Nur, leader of Darfur rebel group SLM-AW, calls for referendum before peace talks

NOTE from Sudan Watch editor: Abdel Wahid al-Nur, leader of Darfur rebel group SLM-AW, is an idiotic coward. Shortly after helping to start the Darfur war in 2003 he fled to France where he still lives comfortably in self-imposed exile. While hiding in France, he sat in a Paris hotel armchair directing the Darfur war by satellite phone. The war killed 300,000-400,000 Darfuris. His nonsensical talks are breathtaking.

News report by Sudan Tribune.com

Published Saturday 31 August 2019

SLM’s al-Nur calls for referendum on Sudan’s transitional authority before peace talks

August 30, 2019 (KHARTOUM) - The Sudan Liberation Movement led by Abdel Wahid al-Nur (SLM-AW) has called for an internationally monitored referenda on the transitional constitution and the representation of its cosignatories before to engage in peace talks.

Four months after the ouster of former President Omer al-Bashir last April, the SLM-AW for the first time and in a statement written in English made public its response to the calls from various Sudanese political forces to lay down arms and to join a national process for peace during the first six months of the transitional period.

The holdout group in a statement extended to Sudan Tribune voiced its rejection of the Political Agreement and the Constitutional Declaration signed by the Transitional Military Council and the Forces for Freedom and Change (FFC), describing it "as patently illegitimate and exclusionary".

"The accord reached between the TMC and FFC is simply another new variant of a civilian rubber stamp for the soldiers, paramilitaries, secret policemen," said the statement to explain the group’s rebuke for the process.

Since last April, there were several contacts by various political FFC groups with the SLM leader in a bide to persuade the group to negotiate a lasting peace agreement after the regime change.

During the era of the Islamist regime, the SLM had only participated in the Abuja process in 2006. Since the group asks to repair the consequences of the conflict and disband the government militia accused of war crimes before to negotiate a deal addressing the root causes of the conflict.

In his nine-page statement, emailed to Sudan Tribune, al-Nur set what he called "terms and condition for conflict resolution dialogue".

"We call for preparations for a national plebiscite to be undertaken immediately for a free and transparent vote under international observation, to take place sixty days from now," he further said.

He added that Sudanese should answer by yes or no to three questions.

The first question: asks the Sudanese if they approve "the continuation of the interim government under the terms the Constitutional Declaration; the second: complete withdrawal of the militaries from the transitional authority institutions; the third: do they approve a full and immediate return to civilian rule.

The armed group went further to propose to hold elections within 90 days after the referendum on the national level. Once the national elections are conducted, regional elections for state governors will take place 60 days after.

In a briefing to the Security Council on 26 August, Jean Pierre Lacroix said the intermittent clashes continue in Jebel Marra between the Sudanese army backed by the Rapid Support Forces and the SLM fighters.

In his position paper, al-Nur added 13 other conditions before the referenda including the full withdrawal of the army and government militias from Darfur region, al-Bashir’s transfer to the International Criminal court, and release of prisoners of war and conscience.

In addition, the paper reintroduced the SLM-Aw demands for disbanding of militias, land restoration to its owners and compensation for the war-affected civilians.

President Salva Kiir has called on al-Nur to come to Juba and join consultations meetings his government is holding with the other armed groups in preparations for peace talks with the government headed by Abdallah Hamdok.

The South Sudanese initiative aims at bringing the divided armed groups to establish a one negotiating paper before to meet the Sudanese government.

Juba also consults with Sudan’s neighbouring countries particularly Egypt and Chad and seeks to involve them in this demarche.

Egypt expressed willingness to host Sudan’s peace process. (ST)

View original:  http://www.sudantribune.com/spip.php?article68030