Thursday, March 12, 2020

Sudan: German President Steinmeier visits Khartoum - Germany involved in UN Missions in Sudan, S. Sudan

German President Steinmeier’s visit boosts Sudan bid against isolation
Report from monitor.co.ug
Dated Saturday, 29 February 2020
Photo: German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier and Sudanese Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok

German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier’s visit to Khartoum this week has become the latest marketing tool for the transitional government to help Sudan out of international isolation.

Mr Steinmeier became the first German President to visit Khartoum since 1985, and is the highest ranked global leader to visit Sudan since the ouster of Omar al-Bashir last April.

His two-day trip from Thursday has left authorities excited and hoping it could further improve the country's image.

Sudan is still struggling to get off the US sanctions list.

In Khartoum, the German leader met Abdul Fattah Al-Burhan, the leader of the Transitional Sovereign Council, as well as Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok.

“I am here to say that we are happy with the changes in Sudan and public opinion is interested in that as well,” Steinmeier said.

He urged the international community to help the country to rebuild.

“We know the difficult economic situation and Sudan needs access to international financial institutions,” Steinmeier told a joint press conference with Premier Hamdok on Thursday.

“I assured Hamdok that Germany can be relied on and pointed out the economic potentials…Germany is ready to support the peace process.”

The German leader had visited Burkina Faso and Kenya this week, promising support for development and trade.

Germany, for example, has announced that it will increase its contribution towards fighting locust invasion in East Africa, providing an additional $18.7 million to the UN Food and Agricultural Organization, increasing its total commitment to $21.99 million.

But in Sudan, where food shortage and hard economic times have been felt just as much, the problem is the restriction to international assistance. 

Officially, the US lists Sudan as a state sponsor of terrorism and a USA Court has issued a verdict demanding that Khartoum pays families of victims of a US warship bombed in Yemen in 2001. The terror merchants of that incident were reportedly trained in Sudan, where then al-Qaeda mastermind Osama bin Laden was living in the 1980s.

President Steinmeier’s visit indicated thawing relations between Germany and Sudan, which had been in a lull for the three decades of Omar al-Bashir’s rule.

Prime Minister Hamdok said Berlin’s decision to lift the development ban on Sudan establishes strong ties.

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Germany Extends Involvement in UN Missions in Sudan, S. Sudan Until 2018
Report from Sputnik News
Dated 02 November 2015, 14:46

Bundeswehr's involvement in the United Nations–African Union Mission in Darfur (UNAMID), and the UN Mission in the Republic of South Sudan (UNMISS) will be extended until the end of 2017, maintaining a regular level of staff, up to 50 soldiers at each point, according to government spokesman Steffen Seibert.

BERLIN (Sputnik) — The German Cabinet has decided to extend the Bundeswehr's involvement in the United Nations–African Union Mission in Darfur (UNAMID), and the UN Mission in the Republic of South Sudan (UNMISS) until the end of 2017, government spokesman Steffen Seibert said on Wednesday.

Earlier this week, an independent inquiry revealed that the UN peacekeeping mission had certain shortcomings in South Sudan, and failed to properly protect hundreds of civilians. Following the inquiry's publication, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki moon pledged to introduce additional measures to improve the mission and bolster its protection capabilities.

"In both cases, the German part amounted largely to guiding and advising tasks, in both cases it will be extended until the end of 2017, maintaining a regular level of staff, up to 50 soldiers at each point," Seibert said.

According to him, the Bundeswehr mission in Sudan would remain part of long-term efforts for "a lasting settlement of the conflict and stabilization of peace consolidation in the region."

UNAMID was deployed to Sudan's western region of Darfur in 2007, which has been engaged in an armed conflict between rebel groups and the government of Sudan since 2003. The rebels accused authorities of oppressing Darfur's non-Arab population, to which the government initially responded by ethnic cleansing.

South Sudan, which separated from Sudan in 2011, has been engaged in an armed ethnic conflict since 2013, when President Salva Kiir said that a military coup had been planned in the country, pointing the blame squarely at rebel leader Rijek Mashar. Apart from killing scores of people, the conflict has put the country on the brink of a humanitarian catastrophe.

UNMISS was deployed to South Sudan in July 2011, initially for a year, but its deployment was later extended.

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PHOTOS: German Air Force Returns From AMIS Mission In Sudan (March 2006)
LANDSBERG, GERMANY - MARCH 24: A German Transall C-160 Military plane parks on an airfield after the return from a mission in Sudan, Africa, on March 24, 2006 at the airbase in Penzing near Landsberg, Germany. The mission in Sudan called "African Union Mission in Sudan" (AMIS), and is the support to move 500 soldiers from Tschad to Sudan. (Photos by Jan Pitman/Getty Images)
LANDSBERG, GERMANY - MARCH 24: German soldiers stand in front of a Transall C-160 military plane after their return from a mission in Sudan, Africa, on March 24, 2006 at the airbase in Penzing near Landsberg, Germany. The mission in Sudan called "African Union Mission in Sudan" (AMIS), and is the support to move 500 soldiers from Tschad to Sudan. (Photo by Jan Pitman/Getty Images)


Photo: LANDSBERG, GERMANY - MARCH 24, 2006: German soldiers stand in front of a Transall C-160 military plane after their return from a mission in Sudan, Africa, on March 24, 2006 at the airbase in Penzing near Landsberg, Germany. The mission in Sudan called "African Union Mission in Sudan" (AMIS), and is the support to move 500 soldiers from Tschad to Sudan. (Photo by Jan Pitman/Getty Images) © AP Photo / Jan Pitman

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FURTHER READING

Sudan Watch - March 23 2006
Germany approves peacekeeping troops to Sudan

Sudan Watch - December 15, 2006
German parliament gives green light to extending Sudan mission

Sudan Watch - May 16, 2005
German military observers fail to get visas for Sudan
Deployment of German military observers to southern Sudan may be delayed. So far, the Sudanese government has issued entry visas to hardly any of the soldiers who are supposed to help with monitoring the peace agreement in the African country as of mid-May.

According to the German news magazine Der Spiegel, the reason for the delay is occasionally seen in the pressure exerted by German diplomacy.

Germany had pilloried the human rights violations in the crisis region of Darfur early and contributed to making the brutal civil war an issue in the UN Security Council, which adopted sanctions.

The UN in New York has now noticed that other Western members of the UN mission have not received the entry visas necessary for southern Sudan, either.

This makes it difficult for the UN to station 10,000 soldiers in Africa's largest country as soon as possible.

One of a total of some 50 German soldiers has meanwhile arrived in the Sudanese capital of Khartoum, another four are in Nairobi, Kenya, for preparations. - BBC via Sudan Tribune Berlin, Germany, May 15, 2005. 
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Wednesday, March 11, 2020

Sudan: EU supports removing Sudan from terror list - Provides €30m aid Sudan, S. Kordofan & Blue Nile

EU Spokesperson to Asharq Al-Awsat Says Supports Removing Sudan from Terror List
Report from Asharq Al-Awsat - aawsat.com
Dated Saturday 29 February 2020, 07:00
Photo: EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs Josep Borrell. (Reuters)

The European Union will continue its efforts to remove Sudan from the US list of state sponsors of terrorism, announced Virginie Battu-Henriksson, Spokesperson for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy at the European Commission

Speaking to Asharq Al-Awsat in Brussels, she said the EU welcomes recent progress between Washington and Khartoum in this regard.

She made her remarks hours ahead of an anticipated visit by EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs Josep Borrell to Khartoum.

Battu-Henriksson said Borrell will stress to Sudanese officials that the EU will continue to play an active role in supporting the political transition in Sudan as it pursues political and economic reform.

The EU will continue to stand by the Sudanese people as they work towards democracy, peace and stability, she added.

Borrell will travel to Sudan on Saturday. He will meet Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok and the Chairman of the Sovereign Council Abdel Fattah Al-Burhan and bring a message of support to the civilian transition.

He will also meet in Khartoum with Foreign Ministers from member countries of the Intergovernmental Authority for Development (IGAD).

On Sunday, Borrell will visit a camp for Internally Displaced People in Darfur.

In a visit to Brussels in November, Hamdok said Sudan does not sponsor terrorism, stressing the importance of cooperation with Europe in removing it from the US terror list.

He said this goal was a priority for the Sudanese government and that it can be achieved with European support.

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Sudan: European Union provides €30 million in humanitarian assistance
Article by European Union
Dated Sunday 01 March 2020 
Photo: Terminal Dr, Juba, South Sudan (Chetan Sharma, Unsplash)
This article is brought to you in association with the European Commission.

The European Union provides €30 million in humanitarian funding for vulnerable people in Sudan to help address needs in the country.

The announcement comes as High Representative/Vice-President, Josep Borrell, visited EU aid projects in El Fasher, North Darfur, one of the conflict-affected areas in Sudan. “The European Union continues to stand in solidarity with the people in need in Sudan. Our humanitarian assistance notably helps children get access to education, which is crucial to build a better future. In time of crisis, it is fundamental that our humanitarian partners can fully exercise their lifesaving job. We welcome the recent positive steps taken by the Sudanese transitional government to ensure this.”

Janez Lenarčič, Commissioner for Crisis Management, said: “Helping those most in need is our priority. Our new aid package will provide food and nutritional assistance, shelter, emergency healthcare, access to clean water, and education for children caught in humanitarian crises.”

The EU is a leading humanitarian donor in Sudan. Since 2011 it has allocated almost €550 million in life-saving assistance to address various humanitarian needs in the country, largely destined for the Darfur states. 

The new funding will also support delivery of aid in South Kordofan and Blue Nile, areas that have been cut off from international assistance for years.

Background
More than 9 million people in Sudan are estimated to be in need of humanitarian assistance, with access to food remaining a major humanitarian concern. Nearly 2 million people in Sudan are still uprooted from their homes, while the country itself hosts over 1 million refugees who rely mostly on humanitarian aid for their survival. The EU complements its humanitarian funding with development assistance that helps communities build resilience to increase people’s access to social protection in the long-term.

The bulk of EU humanitarian aid in Sudan provides food assistance and nutritional care as many households struggle to afford enough food to meet their needs. The EU also contributes to treating and preventing malnutrition among children under 5 years of age, and pregnant or breastfeeding mothers. Support for protection assistance remains also key, in particular for internally displaced people and refugees.
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European Union announces additional €100m for Sudan
Article from and by Sudan Tribune.com
Dated Sunday 01 March 2020

(KHARTOUM) - Josep Borrell, the new EU foreign policy chief, Saturday announced an additional €100 million support to Hamdok’s government to meet the most urgent needs for democratic transition in Sudan.
Photo: Josep Borrell new EU foreign policy chief (L) shakes hand with Sudanese premier Abdallah Hamdok on 29 Feb 2020 (ST photo)

Borrell who is in a two-day visit in Khartoum reiterated the European Union’s commitment to supporting the democratic and economic transition in Sudan which is a country of origin and transition for refugees and migrants moving to Europe.

Following his arrival to Khartoum, the Spanish diplomat met with the head of the Sovereign Council Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and the Prime Minister Abdallah Hamdok to discuss ways political and economic they EU can provide to Sudan’s transitional institution

Following his meeting with Hamdok, he posted a tweet announcing an additional EUR 100 million packages of EU support for the transition and economic reform process.

In a separate statement, Jutta Urpilainen, the EU Commissioner for International Partnerships said the European assistance to Sudan aims at supporting economic reforms, economic opportunities for youth and women, and the peace process and democratic governance.

"This new package of financial assistance will help the Sudanese Government to implement critical economic reforms required to create jobs and expand the provision of public services across the country, and to provide an opportunity for the youth and women at the forefront of change in Sudan", said Urpilainen.

The additional €100 million will be given disbursed through the EU Emergency Trust Fund for stability and addressing root causes of irregular migration and displaced persons in Africa’ (EUTF for Africa).

Through the same fund for Africa, the EU already provided a €7 million support to the office of the Prime Minister, €35 million to bolster the country’s social protection system.

Also, the EU allocated €60 million to fund development projects in Sudan for this 2020.

In October 2019, an EU delegation pledged that EU will give Sudan €200 million followed by €141 million at a later date. They also agreed to provide Sudan with €100 million and 25 million as humanitarian aid.

European diplomats have launched calls to remove Sudan from the U.S. terror list to allow the international financial institutions to support economic reforms in the East African country which ravaged by civil wars and corruption.

The visiting EU diplomat also held a meeting with the IGAD ministers to discuss the joint partnership with the region countries on migration and climate change.

The EU has already paid over €500 million for development programmes dealing with migration and forced displacement in the region.

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Sudan: UN chief wants Sudan dropped from terror list

Getty Images/BBC World Service
UN chief Mr Antonio Guterres said post-Bashir Sudan needs support in its political transition 

UN chief wants Sudan dropped from terror list
Report by BBC World Service
Dated 10 February 2020 5:08

The UN's Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has told African leaders that it's time to remove Sudan from the list of state sponsors of terrorism.

Addressing the annual African Union summit in Addis Ababa, Mr Guterres said the UN would drum up international support that would enable the country to overcome its challenges.

Sudan is being welcomed back into the international fold following the toppling last year of the former president, Omar al-Bashir.

The leaders at the summit will discuss an African-led peace effort to end the civil war in Libya.
They will also consider how to tackle worsening militant insurgencies across Africa.

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Tuesday, March 10, 2020

Sudan's PM Abdalla Hamdok says he survived ‘terror attack’ in Khartoum - “Professionally plotted” attack claimed by Sudanese Islamic Youth Movement

  • Convoy hit by gunfire near centre of capital.
  • PM Hamdok says he's in 'good shape'.
  • Abdalla Hamdok's motorcade was targeted by an explosion, claimed by Sudanese Islamic Youth Movement.
  • Three witnesses told Reuters the attack happened near the northern entrance to the Kober bridge, which crosses the Blue Nile from Khartoum North to the city centre, where Hamdok's office is located.
  • The convoy appeared to have been targeted from above, they said. State radio said it had been hit by gunfire and a projectile, while state television said it had been targeted by a car bomb.
  • Britain's ambassador to Sudan, Irfan Siddiq, called today's incident "a deeply worrying event (that) reaffirmed the fragile nature of this transition and the vital role being played by the PM".
  • After Monday's attack the Sudanese Professionals Association (SPA), which spearheaded the anti-Bashir movement, called for further rallies to display unity and support for civilian rule. 
  • The protest movement that led the uprising against al-Bashir called the blast a “terrorist attack.” The statement by the Forces for the Declaration of Freedom and Change called on people to take to the streets to “show our unity and cohesion ... and protect the transitional authority.”
Read more in the following reports by Reuters, Daily Telegraph, Deutsche Welle, BBC, Associated Press - and tweets by PM Hamdok reassuring the world that he is in 'good shape' and back at his desk watching the news on TV. Note, the must-see disturbing film clip linked to in a postscript at the end of this post.

UPDATE 4-Sudan's PM survives assassination attempt in Khartoum
Report from Reuters by Khalid Abdelaziz (Additional reporting by Omar Fahmy in Cairo Writing by Aidan Lewis and Nadine Awadalla Editing by Mark Heinrich)
Dated Monday 09 March 2020

* Convoy hit by gunfire near centre of capital
* PM Hamdok says he's in 'good shape'
* Heads technocratic cabinet in fragile transition
* Military, civilians sharing power after Bashir ousted (Adds security council comment)

KHARTOUM, March 9 (Reuters) - Sudanese Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok survived an assassination attempt targeting his convoy as he headed to work on Monday morning in the capital Khartoum, officials said.

Hamdok said he was in "good shape" and that what had happened would be "an additional push to the wheel of change in Sudan", where he heads a transitional government following the overthrow last year of long-time President Omar al-Bashir.

Hamdok's government is struggling to manage a severe economic crisis that triggered months of protests against Bashir and continued after his downfall in April.

Three witnesses told Reuters the attack happened near the northern entrance to the Kober bridge, which crosses the Blue Nile from Khartoum North to the city centre, where Hamdok's office is located.

The convoy appeared to have been targeted from above, they said. State radio said it had been hit by gunfire and a projectile, while state television said it had been targeted by a car bomb.

"I saw the moment of the explosion and the strike, and the strike came from a high building," one witness said.

Images broadcast on regional TV channels and social media showed a convoy including several damaged white SUVs and a badly damaged car.

Large crowds of onlookers gathered as police tried to secure the site. One member of Hamdok's entourage suffered light injuries, a government statement said.

An investigation was launched into who was behind the attack, said Information Minister Faisal Salih. 

 "Terrorist attempts and dismantling the old regime will be dealt with decisively. What happened not only targeted the prime minister himself but targeted the Sudanese revolution."

The Sudanese security council headed by General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan condemned the attack and said it would seek the help of friendly countries to investigate it and bring suspects to justice, a statement said.

TENSE TRANSITION

Hamdok leads a government of technocrats under a power-sharing agreement between the military and civilian groups for a transitional period due to last until late 2022.

Relations between civilians and the military have been tense, and the government has encountered resistance as it tries to implement economic reforms.

Transitional authorities are also taking steps to disempower Bashir's supporters, including parts of the security services.

In mid-January, armed security agents linked to Bashir fought soldiers in Khartoum for several hours, after a dispute linked to severance packages.

Soon after Bashir's overthrow, authorities said they had thwarted several coup attempts by military officers.

"The attempted assassination of Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok is the new episode in a series of coup plots against the revolution," Khalid Omer, a leading member of the civilian coalition that backed last year's uprising, said on Twitter.

Hamdok is an economist and former senior United Nations official who is well connected with the international community.

Britain's ambassador to Sudan, Irfan Siddiq, called Monday's incident "a deeply worrying event (that) reaffirmed the fragile nature of this transition and the vital role being played by the PM".

Thousands of anti-military protesters have held demonstrations in recent weeks to support Hamdok and his government.

After Monday's attack the Sudanese Professionals Association (SPA), which spearheaded the anti-Bashir movement, called for further rallies to display unity and support for civilian rule. 

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Sudan's prime minister survives assassination attempt in Khartoum
Report from The Daily Telegraph.co.uk
AFRICA CORRESPONDENT
Dated Monday 09 March 2020 • 4:50pm

Sudan's prime minister survives assassination attempt in Khartoum
Abdalla Hamdok's motorcade was targeted by an explosion, claimed by Sudanese Islamic Youth Movement
Photo: Security measures are taken at the site after a roadside bomb explodes near Sudanese prime minister's convoy in Khartoum CREDIT: Mahmoud Hjaj/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images

Sudan’s reformist prime minister has pledged to press ahead with his country’s “democratic revolution” after narrowly surviving an assassination attempt on Monday.

A motorcade carrying Abdalla Hamdok was struck by an explosion and sustained gunfire as it approached Cooper Bridge in the capital Khartoum shortly after 9am, government officials said.

Mr Hamdok’s armoured vehicle was damaged in the attack but he himself escaped unharmed.

There were no reports of fatalities although a police outrider was wounded.

The assassination attempt, responsibility for which was claimed by a little-known group calling itself the “Sudanese Islamic Youth Movement”, will be seen as an attempt to thwart Mr Hamdok in his efforts to lead Sudan towards civilian democracy after decades of military dictatorship....

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Sudan's leader survives attempted assassination
Report from Deutsche Welle.com
By kmm/ng (Reuters,dpa,AP)
Dated Monday 09 March 2020

Sudanese Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok was traveling in convoy through the capital of Khartoum when there was an explosion. Hamdok survived and was taken to a "safe place" but it isn't known who carried out the attack. 
Photo: Sudan's prime minister survived an attack on his convoy in the capital Khartoum on Monday morning, reported state news agency SUNA.

Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok was in "good health and in a safe place" following an explosion that targeted his convoy as he traveled to work.

No group has so far claimed responsibility for the attack.

Tweeting pictures of himself seated behind a large desk after the incident, Hamdok assured the Sudanese people that he is well and "completely healthy."

"What happened will not stop the path of change, it will be nothing but an additional push in the strong waves of the revolution," he said on Twitter.

What happened in the attack?
The attack targeted Hamdok's convoy on Monday morning in the northeast Kober district of the city. Sudan's information minister, Faisal Salih, said that the attack was carried out using both explosives and firearms.

Images on state television showed at least two damaged vehicles at the blast site that was cordoned off by police.

Salih, said: "Terrorist attempts and dismantling the old regime will be dealt with decisively," quoted Reuters news agency. A search is underway to find the attackers.

Hamdok has headed an interim military-civilian government after a huge pro-democracy movement swept the country, ousting longterm ruler Omar al-Bashir in April 2019. Hamdok's government is in charge over a three-year transition period, intended to pave the way for democratic elections.

 Watch video 02:22 Sudanese celebrate power-sharing agreement
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Sudan PM Abdalla Hamdok survives assassination attempt
Report from BBC News 
Dated Monday 09 March 2020
Photo: The area has been cordoned off by the police
Sudan's prime minister has survived an assassination attempt after his convoy was attacked in the capital, Khartoum. "I would ...Read more: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-51800278
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Sudan PM says he survived 'terror attack' in capital
By Samy Magdy, Associated Press (AP)
Dated Monday 09 March 2020 (7:23 a.m.) - excerpts:

The country’s top prosecutor, Taj al-Ser Ali al-Hebr, said in a statement that prosecutors have embarked on their investigation into the “professionally plotted” attack.

A statement from the prime minister's office said the attackers used explosives and firearms, and that a security officer was lightly wounded. The statement was read by Faisal Saleh, Sudan’s information minister and interim government spokesman. He said the convoy was hit near the Kober Bridge.

Footage posted online showed two white, Japanese-made SUVs typically used by Sudan’s top officials parked on a street, damaged with its widows broken. Another vehicle was badly damaged in the blast. Several dozen people were seen at the site of the attack, chanting: “With our blood and soul, we redeem you, Hamdok.”

The protest movement that led the uprising against al-Bashir called the blast a “terrorist attack.” The statement by the Forces for the Declaration of Freedom and Change called on people to take to the streets to “show our unity and cohesion ... and protect the transitional authority.”

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Photo: Sudanese policemen stand around vehicles that were part of Prime Mister Abdalla Hamdok's motorcade in Khartoum, Sudan. Credit: https://morningstaronline.co.uk/article/w/sudans-pm-survives-assassination-attempt
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Agence France-Presse (AFP) Photo: KHARTOUM: Sudanese rescue teams and security forces gather next to damaged vehicles at the site of an assassination attempt against Sudan’s Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok, who survived the attack with explosives unharmed, in the capital Khartoum yesterday. – AFP

POSTSCRIPT - IN HASTE - FROM SUDAN WATCH EDITOR
Last night, I spent 4+ hours following links and tweets leading to and from the following tweet. The tweet features a really disturbing film clip. In disbelief, I viewed the clip, plus a few lengthier versions, six times. Each time felt more scary than the last. The background music adds to the film's seriousness, intensity and creepiness. I am not sure what to make of it all, need more time to think. In my view, the film footage appears to be genuine. Here is the tweet linking to the must-see film clip (hat tip and thanks to Eric Reeves).
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