Sudan Tribune

February 18, 2021 (KHARTOUM) - The Sudanese army chief of staff Thursday received the commander of the Sudan Liberation Army of Minni Minnawi (SLA-MM).

In line with the peace agreement signed on 3 October 2020, the armed groups have to joint cantonment sites and to be trained with the national army ahead of its gradual integration.

"Lt Gen Mohamed Osman al-Hussein received in his office on Thursday the field commander of the Sudan Liberation Army Juma Haggar," the Sudan Armed Forces (SAF) said in a statement released on Thursday.

The meeting was attended by the Deputy Chief of Staff for Administration, Deputy Chief of Staff for Operations, and the Head of Military Intelligence added the statement.

The Sudanese government recently called on the armed groups to bring their fighters to the assembly sites in order to start the training of the joint forces that will protect civilians in Darfur. Until now only the Sudanese government troops are deployed on the ground.

The SLA-MM which was based in Libya regained the country last November. UN experts say some of them are still in north African country but the group's leader says all of them now in Sudan.

In line with the peace agreement, the armed groups should not recruit new troops after the signing of the peace agreement. The fighters who are still outside the country will not be accepted in the cantonment sites after a certain delay.

(ST)

February 17, 2021 (MOROBO) - The opposition National Salvation Front (NAS) led by General Thomas Cirillo Swaka has dismissed allegations that it was responsible for the death of General Saki James Palaoki, it's former area commander for Maridi area in South Sudan's Western Equatoria State.

Thomas Cirillo Swaka (Photo Reuters)

Gen. Palaoki was kiled in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) on February 10.

"The allegations and propaganda against NAS is mere mudslinging and baseless lie devoid of evidence, but aimed to sow division and ethnic hatred", partly reads NAS's statement extended to Sudan Tribune.

The opposition group accused the Democratic Resistance Movement (DRM) of being behind allegations that it killed Gen. Palaoki.

"NAS urges it's members to ignore them and treat them with the contempt they deserve," added the statement signed by it's spokesperson, Suba Samuel Manase.

Meanwhile the hold-out opposition group urged the public to shun division along ethnic lines and focus of the struggle to achieve freedom, justice and the rule of law.

"NAS further urges its members to concentrate on their national revolutionary responsibilities and ignore the cheap propaganda of groups such as the DRM," stressed the statement.

NAS, which is not party to the September 2018 peace deal, signed a truce agreement with the government in Rome on January 12, 2020.

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February 17, 2021 (KHARTOUM) - Saudi Arabia said intending to mediate between Sudan, Egypt and Ethiopia to end the 9-year dispute over the filling and operating of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD).

The negotiations over the GERD are stalled over how to fill the reservoir of the giant dam without affecting Egypt water supplies or threatening Sudan small dams.

The three countries also are divided on how to negotiate as Sudan propose to involve African mediators with the support of US and EU observers.

On Tuesday, the Saudi Minister of State for African Affairs Ahmed bin Abdul Aziz Qattan arrived in Khartoum where he met with senior officials, including Prime Minister Abdallah Hamdok and Foreign Minister Mariam al-Mahdi.

"Saudi Arabia stands firmly with the water security of Arab countries, and my country seeks to end the issue of the Renaissance Dam in a manner that guarantees the rights of the three countries," Qattan told reporters, after his meeting with Hamdok on Wednesday.

He said he had met earlier with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi and Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, upon the directives of the King Salman of Saudi Arabia.

"We will continue the good offices to end this important and thorny file," he added.

For her part, Foreign Minister Maryam Al-Sadiq stressed that the filling and operating of the Ethiopian dam should be done is within the framework of a binding legal agreement, and confirmed her country's commitment to dialogue with the aim of reaching a solution that satisfies all parties.

In a related development, Hamdouk chaired a meeting of the Supreme Committee on the GERD to discuss Ethiopian statements about its intention to start the second filling of the dam next July even without reaching an agreement on exchanging information.

(ST)

February 17, 2021 (KHARTOUM) - Fighters belonging to the Sudan Liberation Movement of Minni Minnawi (SLM-MM) arrived at cantonment sites in Khartoum state, as part of the security arrangements in the Juba peace agreement.

The former rebel forces under the command of Juma Haggar, the SLA-MM chief of staff was welcomed by a Sudanese army general at a gathering site outside Omdurman district.

The SLM-MM which posted a video about the arrival of their fighters to the Khartoum state did not give the location of the military site or from where they arrived.

Last November, the former rebel fighters arrived in El-Fasher, capital of North Darfur, from Libya after crossing Chad with the permission of the Chadian army.

In line with the peace agreement, the SLM-MM combatants will work jointly with the government forces to protect civilians in Darfur as they would be gradually merged into the national army by the end of the transitional period.

In a report to the UN Security Council last January, the panel of independent experts on Darfur said that the armed groups agreed with the army of General Hafar in Libya and the United Arabes Emirates to keep some of their forces in Libya.

Nonetheless, Minni Minnawi dismissed their participation in the civil war in Libya but he admitted the presence of his fighters there.

On 14 February, Minnawi met with Lt Gen Mohamed Osman Al-Hussein, Sudanese Army Chief of Staff, and discussed "ways to expedite the implementation of the security arrangements".

Following the meeting, he stressed his group's keenness to communicate with the Sudanese armed forces and to contribute to protecting peace and extending stability.

(ST)

February 17, 2021 (JUBA)- President Salva Kiir is in talks with South Sudan Opposition Alliance (SSOA) leaders in a move that could see its gubernatorial position relinquished for more positions in the Transitional Government of National Unity (TGoNU), a source said.

South Sudan opposition alliance leaders meeting President Salva Kiir in Juba, November 6, 2019 (PPU)

Kiir, the presidential source told Sudan Tribune Wednesday, has been under pressure from some senior ruling party (SPLM) members to enter into an agreement with SSOA to trade off its position of Jonglei state governor for posts at the national and foreign service.

SSOA, a third party to the September 2018 peace deal, was allocated Jonglei and nominated Denay Jock Chagor as governor.

The opposition alliance also has Hussein Abdelbaggi as one of the five vice president, three cabinet ministers and a junior minister.

“There are bilateral talks between the parties. His excellency the president of the republic wants to see if SSOA will agree to let him appoint someone from the SPLM leadership (SPLM-Salva Kiir) to become the governor of Jonglei state so that this governor goes and address the issue of insecurity in the state and give them (SSOA) some positions at the national and foreign service levels,” the presidential aide, speaking on condition of anonymity, said.

The opposition, according to the official, will get more positions to accommodate more of their members who failed to get assignments due to shortage of positions during the appointments.

“I would have taken this offer without hesitation if I were them. This is for their advantage. They will now have more positions than they have now”, he explained.

According to the official, the ongoing talks are now between a select figure within the office of the vice president for service clusters, minister of agriculture, minister of public services and the minister of higher education on one hand and officials from the president's office and the secretariat of the country's ruling party.

“If given, the position of the governor will return to a politician from a Lou Nuer who feel they have not been represented in either the cabinet or at the state level by a faction allied to president Kiir. Riek Gai Kok, a former minister of health is a potential candidate,” he said.

It, however, remains unclear whether the incumbent governor will accept the proposals from the SPLM and whether it would not amount to interference in affairs of another political organization.

According to the revitalised peace agreement, the responsibility sharing at state and county levels shall be 55% for President Kiir's side, armed opposition (SPLM-IO) 27%, SSOA 10% and Other Opposition Parties (OPP) 8%.

The positions that shall be shared as per the responsibility sharing formula are governors, speakers of state legislatures, state councils of ministers, state legislatures, county commissioners and county councils.

(ST)

February 17, 2021 (KHARTOUM) - Sudan's ruling coalition Forces for Freedom and Change (FFC) has rejected a proportion by the military component to appoint military governors in the states facing security problems.

The military component of the Sovereignty Council proposed to give them the position of governor in some states where the security situation is volatile such as Kassala, Red Sea, Gadaref, West Kordofan, West Darfur, East Darfur and North Darfur.

However, Ahmed Hadra, a member of the FFC leadership council told the Sudan Tribune on Wednesday they do not support such a proposal because they do not believe that a military governor can control the situation more than a civilian, as he said.

"There is no agreement on this proposal, which cannot be accepted. Also, there are no justifications for the military to assume the rule of governors."

He said that the governors of the states are nominated by Freedom and Change and appointed by the Prime Minister, as provided in the constitutional document governing the transitional period.

The states with a volatile security situation witnessed tribal violence and inter-communal attacks even before the appointment of the civilian governors.

Hadra said that the Sudanese Revolutionary Front (SRF) groups, their peace partners, demand to allocate them states, adding the issue is still under consideration as the two parties consult on the matter.

On 22 July 2020, Hamdok appointed interim governors in the 18 states of Sudan awaiting the signing of a peace agreement for the final appointment which should be done in consultation with the armed groups.

At the time, the SRF movements said they want to administrate some troubled states during the transitional period saying it would help to implement the peace agreement. Therefore, appointing military governor obstruct their plans and deprive them of political gains among their people particularly in Darfur.

For his part, the spokesperson for the former rebel group the Sudanese Alliance, Huzaifa Muhi al-Din, stated that the demand of the military component to allocate the position of governor in some states is states against the "ABCs of democracy."

"The civilian rule does not accept the involvement of the military in power, and the military establishment has nothing to do with governance," stressed Muhi al-Din in a statement extended to the Sudan Tribune on Wednesday.

He further said that the appointment of military commanders in some states is a breach of the terms of the Juba Peace Agreement, which stipulated the participation of the SRF organizations in the governance of Darfur states.

The partners of the transitional period agreed to appoint state governors on February 25, as part of a time matrix to complete the formation of the transitional authority structures.

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February 16, 2021 (JUBA) - A South Sudanese army general has warned that the young nation could disintegrate if president Salva Kiir and his five deputies in coalition government do not act to avert escalation and spiralling out of control of the current situation.

"We are in no peace and no war situation with 8.3 million South Sudanese facing famine, rampant insecurity across the country, soldiers have not been paid for 7 months, foreign missions have gone without salaries for 21 months, unified forces have been abandoned in the training camps with no plans to graduate them and they have threatened to decamp anytime, rampant corruption, inflation with prices of essential commodities increasing every day, the list is long," Major Gen. Peter Mabior Lual said Tuesday

Writing on his Facebook page, the army officer said Kiir and his deputies were sitting on a time bombard if they fail to stop the situation from spiralling of control.

“President Salva Kiir and his five Vice Presidents should know that they are sitting on a ticking time bomb. With this protracted delay of full formation of the government, things could spiral out of control and it will be too late to manage”, he wrote

The military officer's warning comes barely two weeks after the Catholic bishop of Yambio and Tambura diocese, Barani Edwardo Hiboro called on the government to prioritize care, maintenance, organization and the development of men and women in uniform.

He urged members of the organized forces to carry out well their role of protecting people, enforcing justice and order within our country.

“But leaving them in a chaotic way like it is now, is leaving the country at the mercy of disorganization, of confusion, of violence and lawlessness. When these elements are missing among the men and women in uniform, the reality is that they became part of those who are causing confusion. What kind of nation do we have then?” said Hiboro.

The top religious leader said he was aware no group has laid down weapons since the end of the conflict in 2018, expressing a delay could lead to disorder and lawlessness in the country at the expense of peace and unity.

"If they are disorganized, be sure the country is also disorganized because nobody oversees putting things in order. Can we, therefore, prioritize this? We need to prioritize the reorganization of our forces”, he stressed.

The Bishop was speaking at a social function held on February 10 in Yambio.

(ST)

February 16, 2021 (KHARTOUM) - Iran was behind the recently foiled planned terror attacks on the United Arab Emirates (UAE) embassies in Addis Ababa and Khartoum, the U.S. and Israeli officials told the New York Times this week.

On 3 February, Ethiopia's National Intelligence Service (NISS) said it had foiled a terrorist plot to attack the UAE embassies in Addis Ababa and Khartoum, adding they worked with the Sudanese intelligence agency to arrest the group's members.

The Ethiopian authorities, however, did not disclose the identity of instigators who was orchestrating the planned attacks. They only but said they had been monitoring the activities of these groups since November 2020 in collaboration with several foreign intelligence services in Europe, Asia and Africa.

On Monday, the New York Times, based on statements by the U.S. and Israeli security officials reported that Iran was behind the attacks.

"They say the Ethiopian operation was part of a wider drive to seek soft targets in African countries where Iran might avenge painful, high-profile losses such as the death of Mohsen Fakhrizadeh, Iran's top nuclear scientist, said to have been killed by Israel in November, and Maj Gen Qassim Suleimani, the Iranian spymaster killed by the United States in Iraq just over one year ago," said the NYT.

Rear Adm Heidi K. Berg, director of intelligence at the Pentagon's Africa Command, said that Iran was behind the 15 people arrested in Ethiopia and that the "mastermind of this foiled plot," the paper further said.

In addition, the Swedish authorities arrested ringleader, Ahmed Ismail who is residing in Stockholm.

The Ethiopian security service earlier this month said that Sudanese General Intelligence Service (GIS) also arrested the suspects who were preparing for similar attacks in Sudan.

However, the Sudanese authorities did not comment on this report.

Nonetheless, the Iranian embassy in Addis Ababa rejected the allegations of the American and Israeli officials.

"These are baseless allegations only provoked by the Zionist regime's malicious media," said a spokeswoman for the Iranian Embassy in Addis Ababa.

(ST)

February 16, 2021 (KHARTOUM) - Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, head of the Sovereign Council renewed his support for the Empowerment Removal Committee on Tuesday after a meeting to clarify the misunderstanding between the two sides.

On 31 January, the Committee spokesman Salah Manna accused al-Burhan of directing the Attorney General to release the ousted president's wife from imprisonment. A week later, al-Burhan filed a defamation case

For his part, the committee chairman Yasir al-Atta resigned from his position amid calls to dissolve it.

While the Attorney General said that the release of al-Bashir's wife took place by the Public Prosecution without any interference from al-Burhan but was decided in accordance with the law and after seizing her property and money and preventing her from travelling.

In a statement issued on Tuesday evening, the Sovereignty Council said that al-Burhan held a meeting with the members of the committee to the removal of the former regime including its alternate president, Mohamed al-Faki, and committee members Salah Manna, Wajdi Saleh, Taha Osman and Ihab al-Tayeb.

"The meeting discussed the statements issued during the last period, and the wrong information was corrected," reads the statement.

For his part, "the Chairman of the Sovereign Council renewed his support for the Empowerment Removal Committee, and as the most important demand of the revolution," stressed the statement.

The meeting further emphasized that the committee chairman al-Atta should retract his resignation and resume his activities within the removal body.

The divergence between the removal committee and al-Burhan was seen in Khartoum as an example of the difficult cohabitation between the civilians and the military.

FFC voice support to removal committee

Before the meeting between the committee and al-Burhan, the Central Council of the Forces for Freedom and Change (FFC) issued a statement expressing its support and praising the performance of the removal body.

The council reiterated "its unlimited support for the committee", describing it as "the revolution's first line of defence", and that any attempt to damage it means prejudice to the revolution and its gains."

FFC called on the Public Prosecution to arrest the remnants of the ousted regime involved in sabotage and collect evidence that would allow to bring them to fair trials.

(ST)

February 16, 2021 (JUBA) – China has donated over 14,056 boxes of ready-to-use therapeutic food (RUTF) to the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) to fight child malnutrition in South Sudan.

A South Sudanese boy has a MUAC test, designed to detect malnutrition (Photo: ACF-South Sudan/T. Frank)

"We are very proud to be in association with UNICEF to deliver the nutrition food to the children who are in dire need of food," the Chinese ambassador to South Sudan, Hua Ning said on Monday.

He said China is committed to improve bilateral relations with Juba.

"We hope that the donation from China will help to ease the nutrition situation here in South Sudan and we also hope that continued progress of South Sudan's peace talks will help to ease and finally eliminate the root (cause) of the humanitarian crisis," said Hua

"We hope that every child in South Sudan will enjoy a better future," he added.

For his part, the UNICEF South Sudan Representative, Andrea Suley, said the Chinese aid will help treat over 14,000 children with severe acute malnutrition.

"This RUTF from China will save lives and give children a second chance," he said.

According to UNICEF, an estimated 313,000 children in the world's youngest nation currently suffer from severe acute malnutrition.

(ST)

February 15, 2021 (KHARTOUM) - European Union diplomats in Khartoum urged the Sudanese government to take bold reforms to halt the deteriorating economic situation in the country.

Hamdok government had failed to stop the collapse of the Sudanese pound as one dollar is sold for over 400 pounds; while in January it was sold for over 250 pounds. However, the official exchange rate is 55 pounds for one dollar.

Also, the inflation rate in Sudan for the month of January jumped to 304.33% compared to 269.33% in December 2020, which represents n increase of 35 points.

On Monday, the head of the Sovereign Council Abdel Fattah al-Burhan received a number of EU diplomats to Sudan including ambassadors of the European Union, France, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Spain and Sweden.

Following the end of the meeting, Robert van den, Head of Delegation of the European Union to Sudan told the media they discussed with al-Burhan a range of issues related to the recent political developments and the formation of the new transitional cabinet, tensions with Ethiopia, and the economic situation.

Dool said they briefed al-Burhan about the current size of the EU support to the democratic transition process and the humanitarian assistance to Sudan.

"We noted that the pressure on the Sudanese people is palpable, but we also noted that the government has to take bold and fast solutions to reform the economy," he stressed.

The government has implemented a number of economic reforms and ended the fuel subsidy but it is reluctant to liberalize the currency and to end administrative controls over foreign exchange.

A week ago, a Western diplomat told Reuters that donors countries are frustrated by the government delay to float the pound would not trigger more pressure on the pound or inflation since almost all transactions are already carried out at black market rates.

The message from donors to Sudanese authorities was: “This will unlock huge amounts of financing, grants, assistance, development, investment, and the situation is just becoming worse and worse day by day,” the diplomat told Reuters.

The delay of the pound liberalization in exchange rate reform is holding up the launch of a family support programme to pay a monthly $5 cash subsidy to 80% of Sudan's population.

"Some $400 million in aid and World Bank pre-arrears clearance grants for the first phase of the programme has been withheld because the money would be worth much less if converted at the official exchange rate," further said Reuters.

Recently, a series of protests denounced the government's failure to redress the economic situation, as Prime Minister appeared under pressure from the left groups.

Now, with his recently-formed all parties government, it is not clear if he would keep on reforms and meets the IMF requirements for debit removal and get the needed economic support from the international financial institutions.

EU Ambassador Dool said they also discussed the situation of the eastern Sudan border with Ethiopia, as the two sides are massing troops, creating conditions for a conflict that would destabilize the whole region.

He said they expressed "concern about the troubled period the Horn of Africa is currently traversing".

"We commended the constructive role played by Sudan as the Chair of IGAD and declared our support for a peaceful and diplomatic solution to the tensions between Sudan and Ethiopia," he further stressed.

(ST)

January 23, 2021 (JUBA) – South Sudan's ruling Sudan's Peoples Liberation Movement (SPLM) has ordered for the appointment of the acting SPLM Interim State Secretary for Upper Nile State.

SPLM Acting Secretary General Jemma Nunu Kumba (File Photo ST)

The order is dated in January 20 letter issued by the acting SPLM Secretary General, Jemma Nunu Kumba.

“In exercise of the power conferred upon me under Article 28 (1) (m) of the SPLM Constitution 2008 (as amended in 2016), I, Cde Jemma Nunu Kumba, Acting Secretary General of the SPLM, do hereby issue this order for the appointment of the Acting SPLM Interim State Secretary for Upper Nile State,” the letter read in part.

In June last year, President Salva Kiir and the First Vice-President, Riek Machar reached a deal on the allocation of the country's 10 states after three months of discussions.

The armed opposition (SPLM-IO), led by Riek Machar, was given three states, including Upper Nile, where the appointment of a governor is still pending.

The SPLM-IO nominated General Johnson Olony as governor of Upper Nile.

Kiir, however, rejected the SPLM-IO nominee, describing him a “war monger” and asked the First Vice-President to write an undertaking to take responsibility if Olony breaks the truce.

(ST)

January 21, 2021 (JUBA) - The United Nations has urged “zero tolerance” policy and called on all parties to prohibit the use of sexual violence and cease hostilities in the Tigray region of Ethiopia.

In a statement issued on Wednesday, the U.N. secretary-general's special representative on sexual violence in conflict, Pramila Pattern said there has been a high number of reported rapes in the Tigray's capital, Mekelle and reports that some women are being forced by military elements to have sex in exchange for basic commodities.

“I am greatly concerned by serious allegations of sexual violence in the Tigray region of Ethiopia, including a high number of alleged rapes in the capital, Mekelle. There are also disturbing reports of individuals allegedly forced to rape members of their own family, under threats of imminent violence,” said Patten.

She added, “It remains critical that humanitarian actors and independent human rights monitors be granted immediate, unconditional and sustained access to the entirety of the Tigray region, including IDP [internally displaced people] and refugee camps where new arrivals have allegedly reported cases of sexual violence”.

According to the UN, 59,000 Ethiopians have fled to Sudan, while some 5,000 Eritrean refugees are living in “dire” conditions in the area of Shire. The U.N. says 25 of the refugees are women and girls of reproductive age.

“I call on all parties involved in the hostilities in the Tigray region to commit to a zero-tolerance policy for crimes of sexual violence, in line with their respective obligations under international humanitarian and human rights law,” Patten said.

“I call on the government of Ethiopia to further exercise its due diligence obligations to protect all civilians from sexual and other violence, regardless of their ethnic origin and those displaced by conflict, and to promptly allow for an independent inquiry into all allegations of sexual and other forms of violence, to establish the facts and hold perpetrators accountable, provide redress to victims, and prevent further grave violations.”

While commenting on the monitoring and investigation missions recently conducted by the Ethiopian Human Rights Commission (EHRC) in Western Tigray and the Amhara region, the UN official called on the Ethiopian government to further exercise its due diligence obligations to protect all civilians from sexual and other violence, regardless of their ethnic origin and those displaced by conflict.

Patten also urged authorities to promptly allow for an independent inquiry into all allegations of sexual and other forms of violence, to establish the facts and hold perpetrators accountable, provide redress to victims, and prevent further grave violations.

On November 4 2020, the Ethiopian government launched a “law enforcement operation” against the leaders of the Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF), the region's ruling party, after TPLF fighters attacked a federal military base. TPLF leaders called the federal government's response a war against the people of Tigray.

(ST)

January 21, 2021 (NEW YORK) – The United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) is working with authorities to establish a temporary operating base in the greater Tonj area of Warrap State to reduce tensions and build confidence, a UN official said Thursday.

Map of South Sudan showing Warrap state in red

The move comes amid reports of sporadic intercommunal conflict caused by cattle raiding in the Greater Tonj area of Warrap State.

The incident reportedly led to deaths, injuries and displacement of the population.

A spokesperson for the UN Secretary General, Stephane Dujarric said the mission is closely monitoring the situation and preparing to intensify patrols to deter further violence.

“Additionally, the mission is stepping up its community sensitization activities in Warrap through peace campaigns,” he said in a statement.

The campaigns, he noted, are intended to raise awareness among residents on the need for social cohesion as well as benefits of a peaceful cattle migration season.

Cattle are a main source of wealth for many communities in the East African nation.

Livestock-keeping communities in South Sudan routinely engage in cattle raids, which observers say have become more deadly because pastoralists switched from using spears and arrows to guns.

(ST)

January 21, 2021 (KHARTOUM) - West Darfur State approved on Thursday security plan to protect civilians after the bloody tribal violence that resulted in the death of 160 people and the injury of 215 others.

Following the attacks of 16 January by armed Arab tribesmen on Krinding camp outside El-Geneina, the Sudanese government swiftly deployed troops in the in and outside the state capital but the violent incident continued to take place in several parts of the state.

The West Darfur Governor Mohamed Abdallah Aldoma approved a security plan to restore security the eight localities of the state, said the official news agency SUNA, on Thursday.

According to Aldoma, a joint force consisting of police, security service, army, the Rapid Support Forces, and Central Reserve under the command of the state army command will be deployed across the state particularly in the troubled neighbourhoods.

The state capital, El Geneina has been divided into areas that need urgent and immediate interventions, and others where are deployed stationary forces to arrest outlaws.

He disclosed that large additional forces are on their way to the state the centre. The first military reinforcements came from the other Darfur states.

On Tuesday, Mohammad Zakaria Secretary-General of West Darfur Government said that they opened 42 centres to shelters over about 50,000 displaced persons, including children, women and the elderly.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres spoke with the Prime Minister Abdallah Hamdok on Thursday to discuss the security situation in West Darfur, said a statement released by the Sudanese cabinet.

The Sudanese premier briefed the UN chief "about the military and security reinforcements that the government dispatched to the West Darfur State, and the legal measures that are being taken to hold accountable all those who caused the violence," said the statement.

Also, he told Guterres about the government plans to build community peace and to form the national mechanism to protect civilians.

In a related development, the British humanitarian group Save the Children said they plan to ramp up its humanitarian response in West Darfur in coming days, sending an Emergency Health Team to set up mobile clinics in areas with large numbers of displaced families.

The team will also be distributing hygiene kits and establishing water and sanitation services to help prevent the spread of disease, as well as running mobile child protection services and a family tracing and reunification program.

(ST)

January 21, 2021 (KHARTOUM) - The United Kingdom extended £40 million in aid to Sudan to support cash assistance program that targets poor families and pledged a bridge loan to clear arrears at the African Development Bank (AfDB).

The Sudanese ministry of Finance and Economic Planning signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the British Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office that outlines London's support of Khartoum's structural economic reforms.

The £40 million will finance the "Thamarah" program to support 1.6 million Sudanese families through the World Bank's multi-donor trust fund.

The British Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab arrived in Khartoum on Wednesday for a two-day visit to hold talks on a number of domestic and regional subjects.

His visit was described as 'historic' as it is the first of its kind in more than a decade and the most senior by a British official since the ouster of former president Omer Hassan al-Bashir after a popular uprising in April 2019.

Raab told the Sudanese Prime Minister Abdullah Hamdok that the UK is ready to support Sudan's debt relief once the economic reforms are implemented.

The acting minister of Finance and Economic Planning Heba Mohamed Ali said in a press statement that the British pledge comes within the framework of the UK's contributions that were previously made at the Sudan Partners Conference in Berlin last year.

She indicated that the transitional government began implementing the first phase of the Thamarah program to support Sudanese families, noting that it aims to alleviate the economic difficulties that the country is going through and is implemented through an effective partnership between the ministries of finance, economic planning, labour and social development, in addition to other relevant institutions.

The Sudanese official affirmed the government's commitment to addressing the structural and chronic imbalances facing the economy for decades.

Her ministry also confirmed UK's commitment to providing a bridge loan of $400 million to pay AfDB arrears.

Raab praised the progress made by the transitional government and emphasized the UK's desire to continue to deepen relations with Sudan.

"The United Kingdom and Sudan have strong historical ties and a commercial partnership for which we want to see prosperity and growth," he said.

"We will continue our support for Sudan in its democratic transition and welcome the necessary economic reforms undertaken by the Sudanese government to put the country on a path to creating a better life for the people of Sudan," he added.

The UK Foreign Secretary, also, held talks with the Chairman of the Transitional Sovereign Council Abdel Fatah al-Burhan.

He also heard from women who played a leading role in the 2019 revolution and saw first-hand how British humanitarian support is helping people in need.

Britain has provided £125 million to Sudan this fiscal year, including £5 million pounds in the form of new funding to meet the urgent needs arising from the crisis in the region.

(ST)

January 21, 2021 (JUBA)- Simon Kun Puoch, former governor of Upper Nile, one of the 10 states in South Sudan, has called for calm following attacks in which several lives and properties were lost.

Governor Simon Kun Pouch (FILE)

In a statement extended to Sudan Tribune on Thursday, Puoch said at least 13 people were killed and several others sustained injuries during two separate attacks in Melut County, Upper Nile.

The first attack, which took place on January 13, 2021, left five innocent civilians dead including a child, two women, an elderly person, and two young men, reads the statement in part.

The second incident intervened in Paloch on January 16, 2021, resulting in the death of 7 civilians from Gajaak, a clan from a section of ethnic Nuer. Five others sustained injuries and in critical condition.

The development sparked fears among political and military figures from the area, causing the government to dispatch top army officers to investigate the assaults and diffuse tension from escalating into a large-scale communal feud.

The Upper Nile State is the only remaining whose governor has not been appointed since July when President Salva Kiir declined to approve and appoint the nominee of the SPLM- IO to which Johnson Olony ally himself.

Kiir now wants Machar, the first vice-president in the unity government and the leader of the Sudan People's Liberation Movement in Opposition (SPLM-IO) to write an undertaking to take responsibility should Gen Olony break the truce.

Speaking with church leaders from the All African Conference of Churches and World Council of Churches who had visited him to discuss the delay of implementation, President Kiir said that Gen Olony remains an “active soldier" who operates outside the territories that are neither controlled by SPLM-IO nor the government.

(ST)

January 20, 2021 (KHARTOUM) - Sudanese Prime Minister Abdallah Hamdok, on Wednesday, urged the ruling coalition to submit the lists of nominees for the new cabinet ministers.

Last Sunday, the Nominations Committee of the Forces for Freedom and Change (FFC) said consultations underway with the National Umma Party (NUP) to finalize its nominees for several ministerial portfolios.

Also, the South Sudanese mediation secretary-general Dhieu Matouk held a meeting with the Sudanese Revolutionary Front (SRF) groups to discuss the selection of nominees for the new government in line with the peace agreement.

On Wednesday, Hamdok shared a meeting with the FFC and the SRF to discuss the formation of the new cabinet.

During the meeting, he stressed the need to observe the agreed selection criteria including competence, qualification, experience, integrity and the good conduct of the candidates, in addition to taking into account the equitable participation of women.

Further, the Prime Minister said that the speedy formation of the new government would positively impact the implementation of the Juba Agreement for Peace in Sudan.

The new cabinet will be composed of 26 ministers.

The two ministries of the defence and interior are reserved for the military component, while the armed groups got seven portfolios after long discussions with the FFC.

Based on the results of last democratic elections in 1986, the NUP demands six ministries out of the 17 ministries of the FFC.

(ST)

January 21, 2021 (JUBA) – A South Sudanese civil society says it intends to conduct a survey on citizens' perception regarding the performance of the Revitalized Transitional Government of National Unity (RTGoNU) formed in February last year.

South Sudanese civil society activist Edmund Yakani (The Niles/File)

The survey, Community Empowerment for Progress Organization (CEPO) said Thursday, runs from January 22-February 15 across the country.

In a statement extended to Sudan Tribune, CEPO's executive director, Edmund Yakani said the exercise is intended to generate citizens' opinions for informing the parties' signatories to the Revitalized Agreement on the Resolution of the conflict in South Sudan about their performances in implementing the peace agreement.

He said all citizens, stakeholders and political parties will participate in the survey.

“It is time for us to assess ourselves about our performance at our various capacities in contributing to the genuine and meaningful implementation of the Revitalized Agreement on the Resolution of Conflict in South Sudan. It is good to know our strengths and weakness in engaging in the process of transitioning our country from violence to peace,” said Yakani.

According to the activist, the desk review of the public perceptions survey is completed and its findings would be release on January 22.

He, however, stressed that the final findings of the public perception survey will be release during CEPO's event commemorating the first anniversary of the formation of the unity government on February 22.

CEPO also urged the Reconstituted Joint Monitoring and Evaluation Commission (R-JMEC), the regional bloc (IGAD), African Union and United Nations to conduct in-depth evaluation of the peace partners' performance in implementing the peace deal.

The parties to the peace agreement formed the Revitalized Transitional Government of National Unity in February 2020. Despite this, there are many unresolved key issues, including security arrangements and an agreement on the finalization of governance structures.

Government and opposition forces should, as part of the September 2018 peace deal, form one national army.

(ST)

January 20, 2021 (KHARTOUM) - Ethiopia dismissed statements by the head of the Sovereign Council about a bilateral agreement to deploy the Sudanese troops on the border before "the law enforcement operation in Tigray".

On 16 January, Abdel Fattah al-Burhan disclosed he had agreed with the Ethiopian Prime Minister to close the Sudanese borders to prevent any infiltration to and from Sudan by the TPLF fighters.

On his weekly press briefing on Wednesday, Ethiopian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Dina Mufti told reporters that they were surprised that Sudanese military officials misinterpret "friendly talks for cooperation along the borderlines of Ethiopia as a green light to encroach into Ethiopian lands".

"It should be clear that our government is responsible and sensitive to the sovereignty of the country and could not agree, by any means, to let a third party occupy Ethiopian lands," Mufti further stressed.

During his speech last Saturday, al-Burhan said the Sudanese armed forces have been deployed within the international borders.

Sudanese officials strongly rejected to Mufti past statements about the occupation of Ethiopian territory. They further said there are still two border areas they demand that the Ethiopian army withdraws its troops from it.

No need for South Sudan's mediation

The Ethiopian diplomat also declined the South Sudanese offer to mediate the border dispute between the two countries

"We have heard that some countries have expressed readiness to mediate between Sudan and Ethiopia on the border issues," Mufti said in a statement about the South Sudanese initiative.

He added that there is no need for such an offer because they did not refuse to discuss the matter directly with the Sudanese authorities.

"In this regard, as we have repeatedly said, had it not been for our firm stand to carry out negotiations with Sudan on the border issues, it would have been relevant to invite third parties to mediate the two countries".

Nonetheless, he requested the withdrawal of the Sudanese army from the "Ethiopian" territory before to hold bilateral talks on the border issue.

(ST)