VIDEO: Wagner Group releases 100 Ukrainian PoWs

Report from The Telegraph, UK

By James Kilner

Dated Sunday 16 April 2023; 6:24pm - full copy:

Watch: Wagner Group releases 100 Ukrainian prisoners of war

Yevgeny Prigozhin is seen freeing Ukraine’s captured soldiers in what appears to be a scripted video to mark Orthodox Easter

VIDEO [ Try watching this video on www.youtube.com here: https://youtu.be/kapmHct2L3w 

or here: https://youtube.com/shorts/6iUHzG_VdlA?feature=share]

The Kremlin’s Wagner Group freed more than 100 Ukrainian prisoners to mark the Orthodox Easter in what may be the mercenary organisation’s only prisoner release of the war.

A video posted by Yevgeny Prigozhin, the Wagner chief, showed his fighters wearing balaclavas as they watched the thin, dirty and unshaved Ukrainian soldiers walk down a muddy tree-lined road.

They were still wearing the combat fatigues that they had been captured in. Many were wounded, one man was being carried on a stretcher and another was supported by two other soldiers as he hobbled along.

“I hope you don’t fall back into our hands,” an armed Wagner soldier was filmed saying to the men before they were ordered into a truck, some loading packs of water bottles.

The PoWs are in good spirits following their release CREDIT: Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War/Reuters

Since being ordered to deploy his Wagner Group mercenaries to Bakhmut last summer, Mr Prigozhin’s prominence has risen significantly and he rarely misses an opportunity for publicity.

He has accused the Russian elite of being too “decadent and lazy” and blamed them for undermining the war effort, carefully drawing comparisons between what he sees as his doughty Wagner fighters battling it out on the front line and his own high work ethic.

In what appeared to have been a scripted scene at the start of the prisoner release video, Mr Prigozhin was seen briefing a Wagner fighter.

“Prepare all of them, feed and water them, check the wounded,” he said.

He also released an earlier video of himself wearing combat uniform and carrying a rifle as he lit a candle in what appears to be a dark and abandoned church to mark Orthodox Easter. He didn’t give the location of the church but Wagner fighters have been focused on Bakhmut, which has become the focus of some of the fiercest battles since Russia’s invasion.

PHOTO The location of the prisoner swap, where the photographs and video were taken, is unknown CREDIT: Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War/Reuters

On Sunday, Wagner claimed to have taken two more blocks of the city, where Ukraine’s fighters are holed up in an increasingly tight corner. The Ukrainian authorities described levels of “unprecedented bloodshed”.

View original: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2023/04/16/wagner-group-prisoners-of-war-easter-release-prigozhin/

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Wagner starts withdrawing from Bakhmut. 10,000 prisoners hired to fight have been killed on battlefield

Report at DW (Deutsche Welle)

Dated Thursday 25 May 2023 - excerpt:

Ukraine updates: Wagner starts withdrawing from Bakhmut

"We are withdrawing the units from Bakhmut. From today at five in the morning, May 25 until June 1, most of the units will rebase to camps in the rear. We are handing our positions to the military," he said in a video posted on Telegram.

Prigozhin announced the capture of Bakhmut on Saturday after the longest and bloodiest battle of the war. He said his fighters would pull out by June 1 and regular Russian troops would move in to replace them.

According to Ukrainian Deputy Defense Minister Hanna Maliar, Russia has replaced its Wagner private military units with regular soldiers on the outskirts of Bakhmut, but the group's fighters remain inside the devastated city.

On Wednesday, Prigozhin said that around 10,000 prisoners he recruited to fight in Ukraine have been killed on the battlefield.

View original: https://www.dw.com/en/ukraine-updates-wagner-starts-withdrawing-from-bakhmut/a-65728823

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From Russia with gold: UAE cashes in as sanctions bite

Report at Reuters.com

By Peter Hobson

Dated Thursday 25 May 2023; 12:05 PM GMT+1- full copy:

Exclusive: From Russia with gold: UAE cashes in as sanctions bite

Employees cast ingots of 99.99 percent pure gold during production at Krastsvetmet precious metals plant in the Siberian city of Krasnoyarsk, Russia, January 31, 2023. REUTERS/Alexander Manzyuk/File Photo

LONDON, May 25 (Reuters) - The United Arab Emirates has become a key trade hub for Russian gold since Western sanctions over Ukraine cut Russia's more traditional export routes, Russian customs records show.

The records, which contain details of nearly a thousand gold shipments in the year since the Ukraine war started, show the Gulf state imported 75.7 tonnes of Russian gold worth $4.3 billion - up from just 1.3 tonnes during 2021.

China and Turkey were the next biggest destinations, importing about 20 tonnes each between Feb. 24, 2022 and March 3, 2023. With the UAE, the three countries accounted for 99.8% of the Russian gold exports in the customs data for this period.

In the days after the Ukraine conflict started, many multinational banks, logistics providers and precious metal refiners stopped handling Russian gold, which had typically been shipped to London, a gold trading and storage hub.

The London Bullion Market Association banned Russian bars made from March 7, 2022, and by the end of August, Britain, the European Union, Switzerland, the United States, Canada and Japan had all banned imports of Russian bullion.

The export records show, however, that Russian gold producers quickly found new markets in countries that had not imposed sanctions on Moscow, such as the UAE, Turkey and China.

Louis Marechal, a gold sourcing expert at the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development said there was a risk Russian gold could be melted down and recast and then find its way back into U.S. and European markets with its origin masked.

"If the Russian gold comes in, is recast by a local refiner, sourced by a local bank or trader and then sold on into the market, there you have a risk," he said. "This is why carrying out due diligence is instrumental to end buyers wishing to ensure they respect sanctions regimes."

The UAE government's Gold Bullion Committee said the state operated with clear and robust processes against illicit goods, money laundering and sanctioned entities.

"The UAE will continue to trade openly and honestly, with its international partners, in compliance with all current international norms as set down by the United Nations," it said.

THRIVING GOLD HUB

In a bid to further isolate Russia, Washington has warned countries, including the UAE and Turkey, they could lose access to G7 markets if they do business with entities subject to U.S. sanctions.

The data reviewed by Reuters does not suggest there has been any violation of U.S. sanctions by those countries.

The U.S. Treasury, whose Office of Foreign Assets Control enforces sanctions, did not respond to requests for comment.

The shipments in the customs data, supplied to Reuters by a commercial provider, show exports of 116.3 tonnes between Feb. 24, 2022 and March 3 this year, although consultant Metals Focus estimates Russia produced 325 tonnes of gold in 2022.

The rest of the gold dug in Russia likely either stayed in the country or was exported in transactions not included in the records. Reuters was unable to determine what proportion of Russia's total gold exports were covered by the data.

Most of the Russian gold shipments to China went to Hong Kong. China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said the country's cooperation with Russia "shall be free from disruption or coercion from any third party".

Turkey's finance ministry did not respond to requests for comment. The Russian government, customs authority and central bank did not respond to requests for comment about gold exports.

The shift in Russian exports away from London is not seen as a major blow as the hub is not reliant on Russia. In 2021, for example, gold from Russia accounted for 29% of London's imports but in 2018 it made up just 2%, British trade data shows.

The UAE, meanwhile, has long had a thriving gold industry. Trade data show it imported about 750 tonnes of pure gold a year on average between 2016 and 2021 - meaning the shipments in the Russian records would only account for about 10% of its imports.

The UAE is a major exporter of bullion and jewellery.

DISCOUNT PRICES

The manager of one company that shipped large amounts of Russian gold to the UAE told Reuters that Russian firms had been selling bullion there at a discount of about 1% to global benchmark prices, offering an incentive to trade.

The manager, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said most of the gold his firm shipped to the UAE was destined for refineries, where it would be melted down and recast.

Reuters asked four of Russia's largest gold miners for comment. Nordgold and Norilsk Nickel (GMKN.MM) declined to comment. Polyus (PLZL.MM) and Polymetal did not respond.

For a FACTBOX with details about some of the main companies involved in Russian gold shipments since the Ukraine war started, click here.

In many cases, the customs records show only shippers or traders involved in the transactions, not the end buyer, which could be a refiner, jeweller or investor.

The records show the biggest handler of Russian gold exported to the UAE was Temis Luxury Middle East, a Dubai subsidiary of French logistics firm Temis Luxury involved in the shipment of 15.6 tonnes valued at $863 million from April 2022 to March 3.

Broca Houy, head of compliance at Temis Luxury Group, said the company "fully complies with the laws and regulations of the United Arab Emirates for freight forwarder business".

He said Temis did not buy Russian gold and only accepted transport orders from operators not subject to U.S. sanctions.

Asked about the shipments, France's finance ministry said it would not comment on individual cases but it was very committed to the application of sanctions.

European sanctions do not typically apply to overseas subsidiaries, so European firms whose subsidiaries were involved in shipments of Russian gold to the UAE, Turkey or Hong Kong would not have necessarily broken any laws, said Tan Albayrak, a sanctions lawyer at Reed Smith in London.

The second-largest handler of Russian bullion in the UAE, with involvement in shipments of 14.6 tonnes worth $820 million, was logistics firm Transguard, part of the Emirates Group, the airline-to-hotels company owned by the Gulf state's wealth fund.

Emirates said it had not bought any Russian gold, operated in full compliance with applicable laws and had now stopped transporting it.

"Due to recent regulatory developments, Transguard is no longer providing logistics services pertaining to shipments of gold to or from Russia," it said.

In Hong Kong, most Russian gold shipments were handled by Vpower Finance Security Hong Kong Ltd, a Chinese logistics company. It was involved in the import of 20.5 tonnes of gold worth $1.2 billion between May 2022 and March 3, the records show.

Vpower Finance Security did not respond to requests for comment.

Reporting by Peter Hobson; Additional reporting by Layli Foroudi in Paris and Beijing Newsroom; Editing by David Clarke

View original: https://www.reuters.com/markets/russia-with-gold-uae-cashes-sanctions-bite-2023-05-25/

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Sudan crisis: Actress Asia Abdelmajid one of Sudan's first theatre stars killed in Khartoum cross-fire

Report at BBC News
By Zeinab Mohammed Salih 
Dated 4 May 2023 - full copy:

Sudan crisis: Actress Asia Abdelmajid killed in Khartoum cross-fire

IMAGE SOURCE, ALFAITORY FAMILY

Image caption, Asia Abdelmajid was one of Sudan's first theatre stars

The death of a well-known actress, killed in cross-fire in the north of Khartoum, has shocked residents of Sudan's capital. But she is just one of many civilians still in the city who are paying with their lives as the fighting continues to rage despite the latest ceasefire.

Zeinab Mohammed Salih is a journalist living in Omdurman, next to the Sudanese capital - she describes daily life for people caught up in the conflict.

__________________________

Asia Abdelmajid, who was born in 1943, was famous for her theatre performances - first coming to prominence in a production of the play Pamseeka 58 years ago.

It was put on at the national theatre in Omdurman to mark the anniversary of Sudan's first revolution against a coup leader. She was considered a pioneer of the stage - and the country's first professional stage actress, later retiring to become a teacher.

Her family say she was buried within hours of her shooting on Wednesday morning in the grounds of a kindergarten where she had been most recently working. It was too dangerous to take her to a cemetery.

It is not clear who fired the shot that killed her in the clashes in the northern suburb of Bahri. But paramilitary fighters of the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), who are ensconced in their bases in residential areas across the city, continue to battle the army, which tends to attack from the air.

The RSF says the military tried to deploy members of the police's special force unit on Wednesday - but the group alleges it rebuffed their ground offensive.

The UN's top aid official has warned that the "will to end the fight still was not there" after speaking to Sudan's rival military leaders.

With a military jet flying overhead as I write and WhatsApp messages arriving with more bad news of my friends caught up in the fighting, it feels like neither side is serious about ending their deadly confrontation.

"I was sitting with my brother in the sitting room when we heard the loud noise of the shell and the dust coming from the kitchen - we thought the whole wall had just collapsed," my friend Mohamed el-Fatih, a fellow journalist, told me.

His apartment in Burri, east of the army's headquarters in central Khartoum, was bombed on Monday night.

"My neighbours upstairs and downstairs were terrified and screaming, we had to evacuate immediately to another area."

His suburb is completely occupied by the RSF and rockets are often fired from the military headquarters where it is believed Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, the army chief, and his aides are staying.

My friend Hiba el-Rayeh has also just been in contact in great distress after her mother Sohair Abdallah el-Basher, a respected lawyer, and two uncles were killed last Thursday by a shell that came from a bridge over the River Nile directed towards the Presidential Palace. They were living close by.

Her uncles had actually come to help them escape during one of last week's so-called humanitarian ceasefires.

In another suburb called Khartoum 2, to the west of the military headquarters, estate agent Omer Belal has decided to stay and guard his home.

The 46-year-old has sent his family to a safer district while he and a few other men in the neighbourhood seek to protect their properties from the looting and armed robbery that is occurring across the city.

People's houses, banks, factories, supermarkets and clothing shops are all being ransacked.

Another friend, who asked not to be named, spent five days in a restaurant in Khartoum 2 when the battles first broke out on 15 April.

He managed to escape during the first shaky ceasefire. First he went to the north of the city then decided to go overland to Ethiopia, a trip that took five days.

Now in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia's capital, he messaged to say he had seen piles of bodies as he left Khartoum 2.

Basil Omer, a medic and volunteer, described fleeing his flat when it was shelled in al-Manshiya, east of the army headquarters.

"We spent three days only sleeping on the ground. In the end it was impossible to stay there, I sent my children and their mother to el-Gezira state with my in-laws and I went to stay with my parents in Khartoum North," he said.

I live in Omdurman, regarded as one of the safest places in town - though bullets are constantly flying through people's windows.

A couple of days ago my neighbour was hit by a bullet in her leg while she slept following an airstrike, which have been happening about two times every hour. Although there were fewer strikes on Wednesday.

The Sudanese factions have agreed to a new seven-day truce starting on Thursday, but given that they are currently meant to be observing a humanitarian ceasefire and previous ones have broken down - none of us are holding our breath.

Each day we grow more despondent. Most residents of Khartoum feel abandoned and at a loss that the international community seems unable to exert their influence to bring the generals to heel, given they managed to get them to agree to share power with civilians in 2019 after long-time leader Omar al-Bashir was ousted.

IMAGE SOURCE, REUTERS

Image caption, Central Khartoum has been devastated by almost three weeks of fighting

View original: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-65467934

Condolences. God bless. Rest in Peace. + + +

Sudan: Peter Kiano headmaster of Comboni College Khartoum is reported to have been shot dead

ACCORDING to several posts on social media, Mr Peter Kiono was a very popular teacher, adored by his students. Reportedly, he was killed in crossfire or by a stray bullet. He taught physics and made it fun. I am chronicling his sad death here for posterity. Rest in peace Peter Kiono.

Sad news from Khartoum. Peter Kiano headmaster of Comboni College Khartoum is reported to have been shot dead. He is a South Sudanese.@SouthSudanGov@hiba_morgan pic.twitter.com/DrJ3P85Oh4

— Oryema James OJ (@JamesOryema1) May 19, 2023

Condolences. God bless. Rest in Peace. + + +

UN Security Council Briefing on Peace and Security in Africa: Financing of AU-led peace support operations

THIS part of the below copied report sounds good, let's hope it becomes a reality in time to help Sudan where there is no time to waste: "in his remarks at the 36th AU Summit, UN Secretary-General António Guterres said that he “wholeheartedly support[s] the creation of a new generation of robust peace-enforcement missions and counter-terrorist operations, led by the African Union with a Security Council mandate under Chapter VII and with guaranteed, predictable funding, including through assessed contributions”. 

Report at What's In Blue

Dated Wednesday 24 May 2023 - full copy (SW Ed: beige highlight is mine):

Briefing on Peace and Security in Africa

Tomorrow morning (25 May), the Security Council will hold a briefing on peace and security in Africa. 

Switzerland, May’s Council President, is convening the meeting at the request of the A3 members (Gabon, Ghana, and Mozambique) to discuss the Secretary-General’s report on the financing of African Union (AU)-led peace support operations (AUPSOs), which was issued on 1 May. 

The expected briefers are Under-Secretary-General for Political and Peacebuilding Affairs Rosemary DiCarlo; AU Commissioner for Political Affairs, Peace and Security Bankole Adeoye; and Bitania Tadesse, Programme Director at Amani Africa, a think tank based in Addis Ababa that provides research and analysis on the work of the AU and its Peace and Security Council (AUPSC).

Tomorrow’s meeting builds on the momentum in the Security Council since July 2021 around the option of financing AUPSOs from UN assessed contributions. This has been a longstanding issue in the relationship between the UN and the AU in general, and between the UN Security Council and the AUPSC in particular, since 2007. 

Over the years, Council discussion on the issue has evolved, as Council members have increasingly acknowledged the AU’s proactive role on matters of peace and security in Africa, including its enhanced capacity to respond expeditiously to conflict and crises on the continent. 

Nonetheless, some Council members have strongly opposed adopting a product that would provide a clear commitment from the Council to finance AUPSOs from UN assessed contributions, as was the case with the draft resolution proposed in 2018 by then-Council members Côte d’Ivoire, Ethiopia, and Equatorial Guinea. Among the complications that underlie AU access to UN assessed contributions are questions relating to the adherence of AUPSOs to accountability and compliance frameworks and to burden-sharing with the AU.

The year 2023 appears to be crucial for advancing the discussion on financing of AUPSOs. In a 12 May communiqué, the AUPSC requested the Security Council’s A3 members to “resume consultations with the relevant stakeholders towards the adoption of a UN Security Council resolution” on financing AUPSOs through UN assessed contributions. The US, which opposed the 2018 draft resolution, now appears more amenable to a serious discussion on the matter. (For more information, see our 26 April research report titled “the Financing of AU Peace Support Operations: Prospects for Progress in the Security Council?”.)

The Secretary-General’s 1 May report was submitted pursuant to a presidential statement (S/PRST/2022/6), adopted by the Security Council following a debate on peace and security in Africa held during China’s August 2022 Council presidency, which requested the Secretary-General to provide the Council, by 30 April 2023, a report on progress made by the UN and the AU to fulfil the commitments set out in resolution 2320 of 18 November 2016 on cooperation between the UN and regional and sub-regional organisations, and resolution 2378 of 20 September 2017 on peacekeeping reform. (For background, see our 30 August 2022 What’s in Blue story.)

At tomorrow’s meeting, DiCarlo is expected to brief on the main findings of the 1 May report, which builds on previous relevant reports submitted by the Secretary-General, particularly his May 2017 report on options for authorisation and support for AUPSOs. She might note that, in line with the commitments outlined in resolutions 2320 and 2378, there has been progress since 2017 in the development of the AU Compliance Framework (AUCF) for AUPSOs, which aims to ensure adherence to international human rights law, international humanitarian law, and UN conduct and discipline standards to prevent and combat impunity for sexual exploitation and abuse. DiCarlo may highlight the support provided by the UN and other partners—such as the EU—in developing the AUCF, while underscoring the need to achieve further progress for the AU to attain the highest standards of compliance.

The Secretary-General’s report also provides updates on progress in the operationalisation of the AU Peace Fund, established in 2002 to finance the AU’s peace and security activities, which by February 2023 had mobilised $337 million. 

Bankole may explain the AU’s recent decisions to provide support through the AU Peace Fund’s Crisis Reserve Facility (CRF) to the AU Transition Mission in Somalia (ATMIS), which is facing a budget shortfall, and the East African Community Regional Force (EACRF), which has deployed in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). At a 12 May meeting, the AUPSC decided to increase the CRF’s ceiling from $5 million to $10 million to address pressing peace and security issues on the continent.

Bankole may highlight key aspects of the Consensus Paper on Predictable, Adequate, and Sustainable Financing for AU Peace and Security Activities, which was adopted by the 36th AU summit in February. 

The paper, among other things, expounded on the AU’s 2015 decision to finance 25 percent of its peace support operations budget. This decision created the impression that the organisation is committed to sharing the burden of future AUPSOs that will be mandated and authorised by the Security Council, under the assumption that these operations will be granted access to partial funding from UN assessed contributions. According to the paper, however, that amount represents 25 percent of the AU annual budget to support the organisation’s overall peace and security efforts in Africa, that include, but are not limited to, peace support operations. It seems that the Secretary-General’s report tried to avoid the issue of burden-sharing by arguing that “the option of using United Nations assessed contributions to finance, at least in part, the budget of an African Union managed mission is one that remains largely aspirational given the need for guidance from the General Assembly”.

In its August 2022 presidential statement, the Security Council also requested the Secretary-General to provide recommendations on the financing of AUPSOs that reflect good practices and lessons learned from past experiences. Tomorrow, DiCarlo may refer to the experience gleaned from support provided by the UN to the Group of Five for the Sahel (G5 Sahel) through the UN Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in Mali (MINUSMA); the experience of the UN-AU Mission in Darfur (UNAMID) and the joint UN-AU review on this unique hybrid mission; and the case of the AU Mission in Somalia (AMISOM), which transitioned into the AU Transition Mission in Somalia (ATMIS) in 2022, as well as the UN’s provision of a logistical support package through the UN Support Office for AMISOM (UNSOA) that later transitioned into the UN Support Office in Somalia (UNSOS). DiCarlo may stress the need for the Security Council to take into account the challenges and achievements of these experiences in its future decisions on the financing of AUPSOs.

One of the contentious issues during past discussions on the financing of AUPSOs was the role of regional mechanisms and their eligibility for access to financing from UN assessed contributions. The AU Consensus Paper argues that regional mechanisms, which are viewed as the building blocks of the AU, should benefit from such arrangements as first responders to conflict and crises in their respective regions. 

This corresponds with the growing calls by African countries and regions for robust regional and international engagement to address the serious security threats posed by terrorists and other armed groups on the continent. In his remarks at the 36th AU Summit, UN Secretary-General António Guterres said that he “wholeheartedly support[s] the creation of a new generation of robust peace-enforcement missions and counter-terrorist operations, led by the African Union with a Security Council mandate under Chapter VII and with guaranteed, predictable funding, including through assessed contributions”. This is particularly relevant to the West Africa and Sahel region, which has been facing serious security challenges.

In his 1 May report, the Secretary-General presented a refined version of the joint planning and mandating process for authorising AUPSOs, which was originally outlined in his May 2017 report. This process now involves not only the AU but also the regional mechanisms, based on the recognition that some regional forces later transition into an AUPSO and then into a UN peacekeeping operation. The refined process, therefore, intends to give regional mechanisms an entry point in case they eventually seek UN financing when they decide to deploy a force, which means that they will have to notify the Security Council in advance and involve the UN in the planning process from the outset.

The Secretary-General has already outlined in 2017 various options for the financing of AUPSOs, which include a subvention in exceptional emergency situations, joint financing of a jointly developed budget, establishment of a UN support office, or joint financing of a hybrid mission. 

As stated in the AU Consensus Paper and the Secretary-General’s 1 May report, both the AU and the UN are of the view that two of these options—hybrid missions and a UN support office—are more feasible and provide predictable and sustainable financing for AUPSOs. 

Lessons learned from the experience of UNAMID indicate that hybrid missions require an alignment of political engagement and a budget that covers the mission’s entire financial requirements. 

Therefore, the Secretary-General’s report seems to lean towards the UN support office option, which is considered flexible and practical in tailoring support to AUPSOs in accordance with specific needs and circumstances, while emphasising that this option should be implemented as part of a coherent political strategy.

View original: https://www.securitycouncilreport.org/whatsinblue/2023/05/briefing-peace-and-security-in-africa.php

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UNMISS chief Haysom warns against losing sight of South Sudan peace process amid Sudan crisis

Report at Toronto City News online
By Deng Machol, The Associated Press
Dated Wednesday 24 May 2023 - full copy:

UN warns against losing sight of South Sudan peace process amid Sudan crisis

JUBA, South Sudan (AP) — The United Nations Mission in South Sudan has warned the country’s leaders not to lose sight of the pending implementation of the peace deal that could “make or break” the country” amid the ongoing crisis in neighboring Sudan.

The head of UNMISS, Nicholas Haysom, on Wednesday said even though South Sudan’s President Salva Kiir was mediating in the Sudan crisis, he should also focus on the peace deal in his own country.

“This is not the time to take our eyes off the ball,” Haysom said. “What we can learn from Sudan is how quickly matters can unravel if neglected.”

Local media had reported that there were concerns that the conflict in Sudan was undermining the peace process in South Sudan, with Kiir now focused on mediation as opposed to implementing the peace deal.

South Sudan’s civil war started in 2013 and ended in a peace deal in 2018 leaving nearly 400,000 people dead and more than four million others displaced.

Sudan is a guarantor of the South Sudan peace process.

The UNMISS head said there was no room for inaction. 

“We still see 2023 as a ‘make or break’ year for this nation, if it is to fully implement the peace agreement, which is to suggest that matters cannot be deferred to 2024,” Haysom said.

Under the political roadmap extended in August 2022, the parties agreed to hold elections in December 2024.

But the government has yet to reconstitute the constitution making process, pass electoral legislation or establish the necessary institutions and structures.

“The constitution-making process is, in our estimate, 10 months behind schedule, elections planning is eight months behind schedule, and several aspects of the transitional security arrangements are simply hanging,” said Haysom.

He added that several aspects of the transitional security arrangements remained incomplete.

According to the senior UN official, time is running out to prepare for credible elections. He added that the issue of a conducive political and civic space remains a challenge.

“You cannot really have a viable free, fair, and credible election or a free, fair, and viable constitution-making process, if people cannot talk to each other, if there is no freedom of expression, and if there is not a sort of robust dialogue between South Sudanese themselves,” Haysom unveiled.

But Haysom says they are also encouraging all those involved to address the issue of creating a free environment in which this election can take place.

“There is still some way to go. We are certainly committed to helping South Sudan meet the conditions that are required,” he said.

South Sudan’s political process remains fragile with the president and his former rival turned Vice-President Riek Machar unable to agree on issues, most recently the president’s dismissal of Machar’s wife from the defense ministry.

View original: https://toronto.citynews.ca/2023/05/24/un-warns-against-losing-sight-of-south-sudan-peace-process-amid-sudan-crisis/

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Sudan crisis: Zalingei, Central Darfur no telecoms. Heavy fighting by SAF and RSF in El Fasher, N. Darfur

In depth report from #Zalingei, #Darfur. Main points: Zalingei is cut off from phone/internet. #RSF-backed militias attacked on 17 May, targeting SAF base, govt/NGO facilities, banks and homes, people fleeing from west to east Zalingei to escape conflict+ pic.twitter.com/DQQYacG3Gv

— Eddie Thomas (@eddiethomas88) May 24, 2023

Zalingei witnessed RSF/SAF battles on 15 April, 23 killed, 80 wounded, widespread looting, before local leaders organized a truce. But on 22 May, Zalingei Resistace Committee reported that RSF-backed militias attacked on 400 motorbikes and looted, burned hospital 

banks and govt offices. Motorbikes were banned before, because militias use them to loot and terrorize, but now they're back and people fear a collapse - like what's happening in #Geneina, W Darfur 

Central Darfur was at the heart of the 2003/04 Darfur war, has 400,000 #displaced in 36 camps. But civil politics go on - conflicts are controlled by political/security class, and local people don't engage in 'ethnic' conflict. Few have joined RSF or SAF 

giving cause for hope that the breakdown in Geneina - pitting RSF-backed militias against displaced people in bitter battles over land under threat from climate catastrophe - won't happen in Zalingei 

But #agriculture is at risk: rainy season begins in June, farmers get no harvest finance, they must sell crops or trade just now to finance harvest, but looting/slump means that they will struggle to bear harvest costs, threatening famine 

Zalingei people caught outside Khartoum are beside themselves with worry. 

View original: https://twitter.com/eddiethomas88/status/1661393236504485891

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Thank you @eddiethomas88 for the translation. https://t.co/mj9zNlEMeH

— Béera (@beeradikko) May 24, 2023

_____________________________

Report at Radio Dabanga

Dated Wednesday 24 May 2023 - excerpt:

Humanitarian crisis in Darfur increases as attacks rattle Zalingei

Zalingei, capital of Central Darfur, witnessed various attacks in the past days, the Darfur Bar Association (DBA) reported. In the South Darfur capital Nyala, fighting left multiple dead. Several bodies were found in the market. Communication breakdowns limit access to detailed information.

The DBA said in a statement yesterday that Zalingei witnessed attacks during the past few days, and that no detailed information was available due to the weak communication services.

Sources from the area reported that “armed men” launched attacks on Zalingei on Tuesday, resulting in four deaths and the abduction of four others. The situation seems to have calmed for now, but the aftermath is dire.

Inside the city, families are facing a catastrophic situation, with severe shortages of food and medicine.

Homes, offices, and the University of Zalingei have been looted. The Zalingei Teaching Hospital is said to be out of service.

Yesterday, members of resistance committees in Zalingei reported that paramilitaries of the RSF surrounded the city, raising fears of imminent attacks.

Violence in Nyala

The DBA reported that in Nyala, South Darfur, multiple bodies were found in the market, presumably caught in the crossfire last week. Authorities are working to identify the deceased and inform their relatives.

Vandalism have ravaged vital infrastructure, including that of telecommunications provider Sudatel. This severed crucial connections between institutions and banks in Darfur and Chad.

Yesterday, Radio Dabanga reported heavy gunfire and shelling in El Fasher, capital of North Darfur, in battles between the army and the RSF.

Full story: https://www.dabangasudan.org/en/all-news/article/humanitarian-crisis-in-darfur-increases-as-attacks-rattle-zalingei

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Sudan ceasefire: SAF and RSF claim violations

Cartoon by Omar Defallah (Radio Dabanga) 

Report at Radio Dabanga

Dated Wednesday 24 May 2023 - excerpt:

Sudan ceasefire: SAF and RSF swap accusations of violations

The army says that it “has notified the sides that have mediated the agreement that the rebel militia has not responded to any of the demands of the ceasefire”.

According to the office of the spokesperson of the SAF, the RSF occupied the currency printing press and currency mint on Tuesday.

The army claims that “out of its national and constitutional responsibility,” it “intervened to repel those continuing violations and expelled the enemy from the currency printing press and currency mint. The armed forces also fought enemy attacks in El Geneina and Zalingei on Wednesday and inflicted heavy losses in troops, weapons, and equipment.”

Full story: https://www.dabangasudan.org/en/all-news/article/sudan-ceasefire-saf-and-rsf-swap-accusations-of-violations

Sudan crisis: Egypt’s Shoukry meets with UN’s Griffith

Report at Ahram Online 

Dated Wednesday 24 May 2023 - full copy:

Egypt’s FM heads to Geneva for consultation over Sudan, Syria

Egypt's Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry is heading to Geneva, Switzerland, to consult with several international organizations on bilateral cooperation and regional issues, read an official statement on Wednesday.

Shoukry is set to meet with UN Deputy Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator Martin Griffith, the UN High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi, as well as Amy Pope, the new director-general of the International Organization for Migration, the statement added.

Discussions will address ways to enhance cooperation on pressing regional and international issues.

The agenda of Shoukry's meetings will encompass the Sudanese crisis and its repercussions, and means of providing urgent humanitarian support to the Sudanese people.

Shoukry will also meet with UN Special Envoy to Syria Geir Pedersen to coordinate on the Syrian crisis. 

“Discussions are meant to boost international endeavours to end the crisis and alleviate the suffering of the Syrian people," the statement noted.

Original: https://english.ahram.org.eg/NewsContent/1/1234/501540/Egypt/Foreign-Affairs/Egypt’s-FM-heads-to-Geneva-for-consultation-over-S.aspx

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Sudan crisis: Sudanese singer Shaden Gardood killed

Report at BBC News

By Zeinab Mohammed Salih in Khartoum, Sudan

Dated 13 May 2023 - full copy:

Sudan crisis: Sudanese singer Shaden Gardood killed in crossfire

IMAGE SOURCE, SHADEN GARDOOD/FACEBOOK

One of Sudan's most prominent singers, Shaden Gardood, has been killed in crossfire in the Sudanese city of Omdurman.

Gardood died amid clashes between the Sudanese army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) on Friday.

The 37-year-old's death came only one day after the warring parties signed a deal to alleviate civilian suffering.

Fighting erupted in Sudan in April over a vicious power struggle within the country's military leadership.

Gardood lived in the al-Hashmab neighbourhood, where RSF presence has increased in recent days.

Her niece, Heraa Hassan Mohammed, confirmed her death on Facebook and said: "She was like a mother and a beloved to me, we were just chatting, may God give her mercy."

She then wrote the Islamic phrase used when a person dies: "inna lillahi wa inna ilayhi raji'un".

In a video which circulated on social media, Gardood said she was trying to hide from the shelling and asked her son to close the windows.

She could be heard saying: "Go away from the doors and the windows… in the name of Allah, we are going to die ready wearing our full clothes... you should wear this, we will die in a better shape."

Gardood regularly made live videos on Facebook talking about the clashes and shelling in her neighbourhood, and she wrote intensively against the war.

In one of her last posts on Facebook, she said: "We have been trapped in our houses for 25 days… we are hungry and living in an enormous fear, but are full of ethics and values," referring to looting across Khartoum, the capital of Sudan.

IMAGE SOURCE, SHADEN GARDOOD/FACEBOOK

Image caption, Shaden Gardood was a prominent singer in Sudan

Gardood lived near the national television and radio building, which has been a battlefield from the first day of the war.

The RSF was guarding the building and they came under constant shelling by fighter jets, with on-the-ground clashes between the two forces.

One resident living in the same neighbourhood as Gardood said: "Last night, the clashes were violent and intense, which lasted for long hours with fighter jets hovering over all night last night.

"But what I observed is that the clashes were a bit less immediately after Shaden was injured, then we continued to hear the sound from afar."

The resident said that Gardood later died of her wounds.

Gardood is survived by her 15-year-old son, Hamoudy, and her mother and sister.

The fighting between the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the RSF has been taking place in Khartoum for almost four weeks.

The conflict erupted in mid-April, when the RSF refused to be integrated into Sudan's army under a planned transition to civilian rule.

More than 600 civilians have died and more than 4,000 injured, closing down about 80% of the hospitals with severe food, water and electricity shortages

Gardood was originally from South Kordofan state, a war zone area since 2011, before she resided in Khartoum with her family.

She sang for peace and security in her region and promoted the culture of her marginalised community, al-Bagara, in South Kordofan, playing the role of Hakama - traditional poets in western Sudan who encourage men to go for fighting - for peace.

As well as being a singer, Gardood was a researcher in the al-Bagara Melodies and presented papers on the legacy of the Hakamas in the past and present.

A number of public figures were killed in Khartoum in the past few weeks, among them Sudan's first professional actress, Asia Abdelmajid, who died in crossfire at the age of 80.

Former footballer Fozi el-Mardi, 72, was also killed only a few days after the death of his daughter who was killed in a crossfire in Omdurman.

Four days after the start of the war, constant ceasefires were announced under the request of regional powers, but none were upheld.

The clashes have not stopped as the fighter jets continue hovering over the entire city.

View original: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-65585746

Condolences. God bless. Rest in Peace. + + +