🇸🇩 African Union Concludes Plans for New Sudanese Political Dialogue
The African Union has concluded preparatory meetings for the holding of another round of peace conference to end the fighting in Sudan. The talks, dubbed "Sudanese-Sudanese political dialogue," will take place in the troubled nation "when a ceasefire has been reached" between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the Rapid Support Forces. The organizers say the dialogue is "an entirely Sudanese process that belongs to all Sudanese people".
The warring parties have, however, been meeting in Geneva about creating a safe passage for humanitarian aid. Those talks are under the auspices of Special Representatives of the UN Secretary-General to Sudan, Ramtane Lamamra.
Sudanese Information Minister Graham Abdelgadir had said that the government's delegation was not in the Swiss capital for a negotiation process with the RSF, but to hold "indirect discussions on the issue".
#Sudan
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The African Union has concluded preparatory meetings for the holding of another round of peace conference to end the fighting in Sudan. The talks, dubbed "Sudanese-Sudanese political dialogue," will take place in the troubled nation "when a ceasefire has been reached" between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the Rapid Support Forces. The organizers say the dialogue is "an entirely Sudanese process that belongs to all Sudanese people".
The warring parties have, however, been meeting in Geneva about creating a safe passage for humanitarian aid. Those talks are under the auspices of Special Representatives of the UN Secretary-General to Sudan, Ramtane Lamamra.
Sudanese Information Minister Graham Abdelgadir had said that the government's delegation was not in the Swiss capital for a negotiation process with the RSF, but to hold "indirect discussions on the issue".
#Sudan
@africaintel
🇸🇩The World Health Organization has called for an immediate ceasefire in Sudan, declaring an unfolding humanitarian catastrophe.
“It is critical that we are able to gain access to the country and prevent a critical health situation,” said WHO representative in Sudan Shible Sahbani.
#Sudan
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“It is critical that we are able to gain access to the country and prevent a critical health situation,” said WHO representative in Sudan Shible Sahbani.
#Sudan
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🇸🇩 UN food supplies into Sudan's famine-threatened Darfur stranded
A key supply route into Sudan's Darfur region, deemed at risk of famine by experts, has been cut off due to heavy rains, a World Food Programme official said on Thursday while another U.N. official said refugees had been driven to eating grass.
WFP's Country Director Eddie Rowe told thousands of tons of aid are stranded at the Tina crossing on the Chad border, prompting the body to reopen talks with the army-aligned government to open an alternative, all-weather crossing further south called Adre.
Speaking after indirect humanitarian talks taking place in Geneva this week, a member of the delegation from the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces said it had reached understandings with the U.N., but not the army, to open alternative routes including Adre. Talks are ongoing, they said.
The army, which has warned aid agencies against taking measures without its consent, did not respond to a request for comment.
The World Food Programme (WFP) has described Sudan as the world's biggest hunger crisis, with the western Darfur region most at risk as Sudan's 15-month civil war that has displaced millions and sparked ethnic violence grinds on.
#Sudan
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A key supply route into Sudan's Darfur region, deemed at risk of famine by experts, has been cut off due to heavy rains, a World Food Programme official said on Thursday while another U.N. official said refugees had been driven to eating grass.
WFP's Country Director Eddie Rowe told thousands of tons of aid are stranded at the Tina crossing on the Chad border, prompting the body to reopen talks with the army-aligned government to open an alternative, all-weather crossing further south called Adre.
Speaking after indirect humanitarian talks taking place in Geneva this week, a member of the delegation from the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces said it had reached understandings with the U.N., but not the army, to open alternative routes including Adre. Talks are ongoing, they said.
The army, which has warned aid agencies against taking measures without its consent, did not respond to a request for comment.
The World Food Programme (WFP) has described Sudan as the world's biggest hunger crisis, with the western Darfur region most at risk as Sudan's 15-month civil war that has displaced millions and sparked ethnic violence grinds on.
#Sudan
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🇸🇩 Flooding in Darfur, Sudan
The Sudanese region of Darfur has been cut off from UN food supplies due to heavy rains, says Eddie Rowe, director of the World Food Program in the African country (WFP).
“Now there are huge rivers here. At the moment, our convoy, which is supposed to transport more than 2,000 tons, is stuck,” Rowe said.
He said thousands of tons of humanitarian aid were stuck at the Tina crossing on the border with Chad, prompting the organization to resume negotiations with the army-backed government to open an alternative crossing at Adre.
#Sudan
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The Sudanese region of Darfur has been cut off from UN food supplies due to heavy rains, says Eddie Rowe, director of the World Food Program in the African country (WFP).
“Now there are huge rivers here. At the moment, our convoy, which is supposed to transport more than 2,000 tons, is stuck,” Rowe said.
He said thousands of tons of humanitarian aid were stuck at the Tina crossing on the border with Chad, prompting the organization to resume negotiations with the army-backed government to open an alternative crossing at Adre.
#Sudan
@africaintel
🇱🇾🇸🇩 Libya: UN Representative visits Kufra to see the situation of Sudanese refugees
Deputy Special Representative of the Secretary General and Resident Humanitarian Coordinator, Georgette Gagnon, led a mission to Kufra on 18 July with the heads of five UN agencies to see the situation of Sudanese refugees and host communities, and guide the UN’s scaled up humanitarian response and action.
Since war broke out in Sudan in April 2023, over 1.8 million refugees, according to UNHCR, have been forced to flee to neighboring countries including to Libya, particularly to Kufra in southeastern Libya which hosts thousands of refugees from Sudan.
“Local authorities and host communities in Kufra and other cities in Libya have been actively assisting Sudanese refugees since the conflict,” said Gagnon. “More support, access and coordination are urgently needed to meet the increasing humanitarian and protection needs.”
#Libya #Sudan
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Deputy Special Representative of the Secretary General and Resident Humanitarian Coordinator, Georgette Gagnon, led a mission to Kufra on 18 July with the heads of five UN agencies to see the situation of Sudanese refugees and host communities, and guide the UN’s scaled up humanitarian response and action.
Since war broke out in Sudan in April 2023, over 1.8 million refugees, according to UNHCR, have been forced to flee to neighboring countries including to Libya, particularly to Kufra in southeastern Libya which hosts thousands of refugees from Sudan.
“Local authorities and host communities in Kufra and other cities in Libya have been actively assisting Sudanese refugees since the conflict,” said Gagnon. “More support, access and coordination are urgently needed to meet the increasing humanitarian and protection needs.”
#Libya #Sudan
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🇸🇩 Civilians suffering horrendous violence in Sudan conflict, MSF says
Civilians in Sudan have suffered horrendous levels of violence during more than a year of conflict between the army and a rival paramilitary force, facing repeated attacks, abuse and exploitation by both sides, the aid group Medecins Sans Frontieres (Doctors Without Borders - MSF) said on Monday.
The physical and mental wounds of violence have been exacerbated by the collapse of the health system and the lack of an international humanitarian response, MSF said in a report.
Its teams had treated thousands of war wounded in areas affected by bombing, shelling of residential homes and essential infrastructure, it said.
Across Sudan, people's access to lifesaving care has been drastically affected due to shortages, widespread obstruction and looting of medical supplies, insecurity and attacks against patients and medical staff, as well damage to healthcare infrastructure, it said.
#Sudan
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Civilians in Sudan have suffered horrendous levels of violence during more than a year of conflict between the army and a rival paramilitary force, facing repeated attacks, abuse and exploitation by both sides, the aid group Medecins Sans Frontieres (Doctors Without Borders - MSF) said on Monday.
The physical and mental wounds of violence have been exacerbated by the collapse of the health system and the lack of an international humanitarian response, MSF said in a report.
Its teams had treated thousands of war wounded in areas affected by bombing, shelling of residential homes and essential infrastructure, it said.
Across Sudan, people's access to lifesaving care has been drastically affected due to shortages, widespread obstruction and looting of medical supplies, insecurity and attacks against patients and medical staff, as well damage to healthcare infrastructure, it said.
#Sudan
@africaintel
🇸🇩🇮🇷The Sudanese government sent an ambassador to Iran, in turn, the Iranian ambassador arrived in Sudan. Thus, the countries completely restored diplomatic relations.
Tehran and Sudan's military government began talks in 2023 to restore ties. They were broken in 2016 when the African state joined a coalition of countries against Yemen's Houthis.
#Sudan #Iran
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Tehran and Sudan's military government began talks in 2023 to restore ties. They were broken in 2016 when the African state joined a coalition of countries against Yemen's Houthis.
#Sudan #Iran
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🇸🇩 Rapid Reaction Force (RSF) commander Mohamed Hamdan Daglo called on the UN to suspend Sudan's membership in its structures due to the “lack of a legitimate government” after the coup.
Daglo also asked the UN to urgently take measures to provide humanitarian support to save the Sudanese people from hunger. To deliver aid, he proposed using all border crossings in areas controlled by the RSF.
#Sudan
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Daglo also asked the UN to urgently take measures to provide humanitarian support to save the Sudanese people from hunger. To deliver aid, he proposed using all border crossings in areas controlled by the RSF.
#Sudan
@africaintel
🇸🇩 Sudan's warring parties to participate in US-brokered peace talks
The United States has invited the Sudanese army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces for US-mediated ceasefire talks. They will start on 14 August, in Switzerland, according to Secretary of State Antony Blinken.
RSF leader Mohamed Hamdan Daglo said early on Wednesday they will constructively participate in the talks to achieve "a comprehensive ceasefire across the country and facilitate humanitarian access to all those in need."
"We reaffirm our firm stance which is the insistence on saving lives, stopping the fighting, and paving the way for a peaceful, negotiated political solution that restores the country to civilian rule and the path of democratic transition," Daglo said in a statement, shared on social media.
The talks will include the African Union, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates and the United Nations as observers, Blinken said in a statement.
Saudi Arabia will be a co-host for the discussions, he added.
"The scale of death, suffering, and destruction in Sudan is devastating. This senseless conflict must end," Blinken said, calling on the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and Rapid Support Forces (RSF) to attend the talks and approach them constructively.
#Sudan
@africaintel
The United States has invited the Sudanese army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces for US-mediated ceasefire talks. They will start on 14 August, in Switzerland, according to Secretary of State Antony Blinken.
RSF leader Mohamed Hamdan Daglo said early on Wednesday they will constructively participate in the talks to achieve "a comprehensive ceasefire across the country and facilitate humanitarian access to all those in need."
"We reaffirm our firm stance which is the insistence on saving lives, stopping the fighting, and paving the way for a peaceful, negotiated political solution that restores the country to civilian rule and the path of democratic transition," Daglo said in a statement, shared on social media.
The talks will include the African Union, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates and the United Nations as observers, Blinken said in a statement.
Saudi Arabia will be a co-host for the discussions, he added.
"The scale of death, suffering, and destruction in Sudan is devastating. This senseless conflict must end," Blinken said, calling on the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and Rapid Support Forces (RSF) to attend the talks and approach them constructively.
#Sudan
@africaintel
🇸🇩 Sudan: Paramilitary leader says he will attend ceasefire talks in Switzerland
The leader of Sudan’s Rapid Support Forces, General Mohammed Hamdan Dagalo, said on social media on Tuesday that he plans to attend ceasefire talks in Switzerland next month.
They have been arranged by the United States and Saudi Arabia in a bid to bring an end to 15 months of intense fighting between the paramilitary group and the army.
The US State Department said the talks will aim to build on discussions between the two sides that broke down late last year in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
In a post on X, Dagalo said he hoped the talks would become “a major step” toward peace and stability in Sudan and create a new state based on "justice, equality, and federal rule.”
#Sudan
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The leader of Sudan’s Rapid Support Forces, General Mohammed Hamdan Dagalo, said on social media on Tuesday that he plans to attend ceasefire talks in Switzerland next month.
They have been arranged by the United States and Saudi Arabia in a bid to bring an end to 15 months of intense fighting between the paramilitary group and the army.
The US State Department said the talks will aim to build on discussions between the two sides that broke down late last year in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
In a post on X, Dagalo said he hoped the talks would become “a major step” toward peace and stability in Sudan and create a new state based on "justice, equality, and federal rule.”
#Sudan
@africaintel
🇸🇩 Amnesty urges UN to extend Darfur arms embargo to all of Sudan
The NGO Amnesty International has called on the United Nations to extend the arms embargo on Darfur to the rest of Sudan.
The 15-month war between Sudan's regular army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces "is being fuelled by an almost unimpeded supply of weapons into Sudan by states and corporate actors around the world," the rights watchdog said in their report.
This new report, titled "New Weapons Fuelling the Sudan Conflict", found that recently manufactured or transferred weapons from multiple countries were being imported and used on the battlefield.
"There are hundreds of thousands of weapons, millions of rounds of ammunition going into Sudan," fuelling mass human rights violations, Brian Castner, Amnesty's head of crisis research, told reporters.
The existing arms embargo has applied since 2000, but only to Sudan's western Darfur region.
It "is both too narrowly focused" and "too poorly implemented to have any meaningful impact on curbing these weapons flows," the report found.
The UN Security Council must "urgently expand the arms embargo to the rest of Sudan, and also strengthen its monitoring and verification mechanisms," said Deprose Muchena, Amnesty's senior director for Regional Human Rights Impact.
#Sudan
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The NGO Amnesty International has called on the United Nations to extend the arms embargo on Darfur to the rest of Sudan.
The 15-month war between Sudan's regular army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces "is being fuelled by an almost unimpeded supply of weapons into Sudan by states and corporate actors around the world," the rights watchdog said in their report.
This new report, titled "New Weapons Fuelling the Sudan Conflict", found that recently manufactured or transferred weapons from multiple countries were being imported and used on the battlefield.
"There are hundreds of thousands of weapons, millions of rounds of ammunition going into Sudan," fuelling mass human rights violations, Brian Castner, Amnesty's head of crisis research, told reporters.
The existing arms embargo has applied since 2000, but only to Sudan's western Darfur region.
It "is both too narrowly focused" and "too poorly implemented to have any meaningful impact on curbing these weapons flows," the report found.
The UN Security Council must "urgently expand the arms embargo to the rest of Sudan, and also strengthen its monitoring and verification mechanisms," said Deprose Muchena, Amnesty's senior director for Regional Human Rights Impact.
#Sudan
@africaintel
🇸🇩In the Sudanese state of Omdurman, which was held by the Rapid Action Force (RSF), passports of UAE citizens were found among the wreckage of military equipment. The owners of the documents are believed to be Emirati intelligence officers.
Passports of Yemeni citizens were also found. The RSF has previously sent thousands of its fighters to the country to fight the Houthis.
#Sudan
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Passports of Yemeni citizens were also found. The RSF has previously sent thousands of its fighters to the country to fight the Houthis.
#Sudan
@africaintel
🇸🇩 Sudan's agriculture minister says there is no famine in the country
Sudan's agriculture minister said there is no famine in the country and cast doubt on U.N.-backed data that 755,000 are experiencing catastrophic hunger, rejecting the idea of aid agencies overriding cross-border delivery restrictions.
Sudan has become the world's worst hunger crisis since the outbreak of a war between the Sudanese army, whose head is also Sudan's head of state, and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces, who have taken over wide swathes of the country.
"755,000 citizens are not a significant percentage compared to the total population ... they cannot call that famine," said Abubakr al-Bushra, in a news conference in Port Sudan, the country's de facto capital. Sudan has a population of 50 million.
The army has blocked aid and commerce from entering RSF-controlled areas, while supplies that reach those areas are expensive and frequently stolen, often by RSF soldiers, residents and aid agencies say.
#Sudan
@africaintel
Sudan's agriculture minister said there is no famine in the country and cast doubt on U.N.-backed data that 755,000 are experiencing catastrophic hunger, rejecting the idea of aid agencies overriding cross-border delivery restrictions.
Sudan has become the world's worst hunger crisis since the outbreak of a war between the Sudanese army, whose head is also Sudan's head of state, and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces, who have taken over wide swathes of the country.
"755,000 citizens are not a significant percentage compared to the total population ... they cannot call that famine," said Abubakr al-Bushra, in a news conference in Port Sudan, the country's de facto capital. Sudan has a population of 50 million.
The army has blocked aid and commerce from entering RSF-controlled areas, while supplies that reach those areas are expensive and frequently stolen, often by RSF soldiers, residents and aid agencies say.
#Sudan
@africaintel
🇸🇩 At least 22 killed in RSF attack on Sudan's al-Fashir, activist group says
An activist group said Sudan's Rapid Support Forces (RSF) killed at least 22 people in an attack on the city of al-Fashir in the western Darfur region on Saturday, though the paramilitary force denied launching an assault.
The al-Fashir Resistance Committees said on Facebook that the RSF had fired artillery shells on markets, hospitals and apartments in a surge of violence after weeks of stalemate on that front in the country's civil war.
The activist group also said the RSF used a drone to target a hospital. It later said a total of 97 people were killed or injured in the assault.The RSF dismissed the report and said it did not clash with the army or allied groups in al-Fashir.
The city is the national army's last remaining position in the Darfur region, and a key front in its war with the RSF that has turned Sudan into the world's worst humanitarian crisis.
#Sudan
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An activist group said Sudan's Rapid Support Forces (RSF) killed at least 22 people in an attack on the city of al-Fashir in the western Darfur region on Saturday, though the paramilitary force denied launching an assault.
The al-Fashir Resistance Committees said on Facebook that the RSF had fired artillery shells on markets, hospitals and apartments in a surge of violence after weeks of stalemate on that front in the country's civil war.
The activist group also said the RSF used a drone to target a hospital. It later said a total of 97 people were killed or injured in the assault.The RSF dismissed the report and said it did not clash with the army or allied groups in al-Fashir.
The city is the national army's last remaining position in the Darfur region, and a key front in its war with the RSF that has turned Sudan into the world's worst humanitarian crisis.
#Sudan
@africaintel