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May 31, 2018 (MAYOM) - Heavy clashes occurred on Thursday between two South Sudanese army factions in Mayom county, leaving dozens dead and several others wounded, a resident said.

The map of Unity state

James Makuey a resident of the area has told Sudan Tribune that the fighting was between forces loyal to South Sudan army Gen. Buay Rolyang and a group allied to Mathew Puljang in Mayom.

“As we speak now, fighting is still going on and so many people have died,” he said, adding that a number of civilians have been injured.

Another resident, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the attack on Buay's residence caused a split within the military.

“The fighting has stopped for a while, but all forces from both sides are within the town. No one was defeated and it seems they are waiting for reinforcement somewhere,” he said.

The military has not officially reacted to the latest fighting in Mayom county.

The Ceasefire and Transitional Security Arrangements Monitoring Mechanism (CTSAMM), in a new report, said South Sudan army and rebels massacred civilians, burned children alive and gang-raped women, despite a ceasefire agreed upon in December last year.

The 14 CTSAMM are yet to be publicly released despite pledges by regional leaders to have violators of the ceasefire accord punished.

However, both the South Sudanese government and rebels dismissed the report.

Tens of thousands have been killed in South Sudan's war, which began in December 2013 with fighting been soldiers loyal to President Salva Kiir, an ethnic Dinka, and Machar, an ethnic Nuer. More than 3 million people have been displaced due to the civil war, while aid agencies say about 5 million people are food insecure.

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May 31, 2018 (LEER) - Thousands of people are fleeing for their lives amid a sharp escalation in fighting and attacks on civilians in the Leer and Mayendit counties of South Sudan over the past month, the international medical humanitarian, Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) said, calling on all armed actors to stop the violence against the local population.

South Sudanese civilians flee fighting in an United Nations base in the northeastern town of Malakal on February 18, 2016, where gunmen opened fire on civilians sheltering inside killing at least five people. (Photo AFP/Justin Lynch)

Survivors, MSF said in a statement, reported incidences of gang rapes, mass killings, villages looted and burned, and food reserves and possessions destroyed. MSF mobile clinic teams are providing basic medical care to communities that they can reach and have treated 41 survivors of sexual violence in the past month alone.

"People are running away from the ruthless violence of the warring parties," said Akke Boere, MSF operational manager.

"They are caught between the front lines, and are themselves the target of attacks. Many tell us of neighbors and family members killed," he added.

The ongoing clashes are forcing thousands of civilians to seek refuge in the bush, swamps and islands, with some people fleeing repeated attacks, the agency said.

People displaced by the fighting have now gone for more than four weeks without adequate shelter, clean water or food, and little access to medical care. The most vulnerable people, such as children and pregnant women, are at great risk of contracting diseases.

"In our mobile clinics, we are seeing medical issues directly related to the living conditions, including acute watery diarrhea, respiratory and skin infections and musculoskeletal disorders, with patients suffering from muscle or joint pain," said Georgina Brown, MSF medical coordinator in South Sudan.

"The rainy season may worsen the situation considerably."

Attacks against health care facilities are reportedly also cutting off communities from much-needed medical assistance. In two locations where MSF works, medical supplies were looted and property destroyed.

The number of people that MSF is treating for sexual assault is very worrying, according to Brown. In one village, MSF treated 21 survivors of sexual violence in 48 hours, and a few days later, MSF treated 20 survivors in another area.

"We know many survivors don't receive any treatment," said Brown.

"People are still hiding in the bush and swamp areas because they're afraid of the ongoing violence, and so they don't have access to basic services, including health care. Until the violence calms down, we can't reach these people to give them the treatment they need," she added.

The current fighting, according to MSF, is the latest episode in the violence that has raged in Leer and Mayendit counties for several years. The warring parties have repeatedly targeted the civilian population and forced them to flee without shelter, food, water or medical care.

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May 31, 2018 (ADDIS ABABA) – The Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) has proposed a meeting between South Sudan President Salva Kiir and rebel leader Riek Machar takes place before the 31st summit of the African Union assembly duel on 1 and 2 July in Noukakchott, Mauritania.

President Salva Kiir greets First Vice President Riek Machar before to start a meeting at the South Sudanese presidency in Juba on 3 June 2016 (Photo Moses Lomayat)

The IGAD Council of Ministers, in a communiqué issued following its extra-ordinary summit in Addis Ababa on Thursday, said a final decision be made on the effective participation of the armed opposition leader on the peace process.

It will be the first time the two rival South Sudanese leaders will be meeting face-to-face since the July 2016 clashes in the capital, Juba.

The second round of the IGAD-led High Level Revitalization Forum (HLRF) ended last week without any deal after the warring parties rejected a proposed power sharing deal developed by regional bloc and IGAD is yet to announce the next date for the negotiations.

Meanwhile, foreign ministers from the regional bloc have directed mediators to develop a full revitalized text of the 2015 peace agreement, which it said should be endorsed by the IGAD Council of Ministers and submitted to the summit for the final approval.

The IGAD Council of Ministers, in the communiqué, also proposed that punitive measures be taken against violators of the ceasefire deal for approval of its Assembly of Heads of State and Government.

It further decided to submit its request to the IGAD Assembly to delegate the Council to decide on actions to be taken against violators of the ceasefire deal on the assembly's behalf.

The IGAD Council of Ministers, however, said it will work closely with the IGAD-Plus nations to realize the objectives of the HLRF process.

South Sudan plunged into war in December 2013, barely two years after independence from Sudan, after a disagreement between President Salva Kiir and his former deputy Riek Machar deteriorated into a military confrontation.

Tens of thousands have been killed by the fighting between troops loyal to Kiir and forces loyal to Machar. The conflict has also left a quarter of the country's population of 12 million either internally displaced or as refugees in neighbouring countries

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Salah Shuaib

The international community's keen focus on allowing al-Bashir's regime to be part of the formula for solving Sudan's crises will sooner or later prove wrong. Al-Bashir's unwillingness to faithfully implement the country's previous political accords is still existing as a severe obstacle for Sudan's comprehensive peace.

As blaming the opposition for not having a will for political reconciliation, the Sudanese president has succeeded in deactivating all peace accords signed by him and his opponents, and thus he had exhausted most of his tactical experiences in keeping his adamantly destructive policies alive.

In fact, the Sudanese opposition groups are not lacking the desire to achieve a stable peace in the country through negotiating the regime. But they rather lack a practical mechanism that deters the regime's systematic manipulation of these accords that are sponsored by the international community itself.

Certainly, after signing the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA), all the country's political forces engaged seriously to reconcile with the regime's aggressive past and to build a new Sudan. The change forces made, for the sake of the country's unity, concessions on many of their fundamental demands to help in creating sustainable peace. Instead, al-Bashir's regime, then, succeeded in bolstering its evil intentions to destroy the opposition forces' capabilities rather than building solid foundations to accommodate them as partners for making a better Sudanese future.

For more than half a century, the Sudanese people had been struggling against the dictatorships that have spoiled all opportunities of making the country progressing in all its societal realms. The opposition forces, before three decades, realized the necessary need to defeat this Islamist tyranny, which has adopted a religious ideology that divided the country into two parts, damaged the state's economic and social structures, and initiated war as a means for giving legitimacy to the junta.

The international community should be entirely aware that the Sudanese people's struggle to obtain national democratic governance is inseparable from the worldwide popular movements to achieve freedom. The whole world knows that Al-Bashir's crimes have led the International Criminal Court to issue an arrest warrant against him and his inner circle for their direct involvement in genocide and other forms of violations towards millions of civilians.

Besides that, his regime has contributed to endangering global peace by harbouring, supporting and training terrorist groups. Last but not least, the international community knows, too, that Al-Bashir's oppression has led millions of Sudanese to flee abroad while paving room for his brutal militias to sustain his corrupt regime.

No doubt, the critical obstacle to solving Sudan's crises is the ideology of political Islam, which aims to establish the Islamic rule in a multi-nation state. International partners, therefore, should support all forces of the Sudanese opposition to help create a democratic Sudan, rather than rewarding the regime for its tactical manoeuvring.

The soft-landing approach to end Sudan's problems, which is adopted by some international powers, is somewhat helping Al-Bashir's regime that is about to fall now due to its severe economic and political crisis. It will only be a stab in the heart of any Sudanese freedom-fighter whose only hope is to get rid of the worst totalitarian system in our planet today.

The international community has indeed noticed that all Sudan's signed peace accords have included essential items for political reconciliation that can end the war, separatist trends, and violations of human rights. The CPA constitution was comprehensive enough to accommodate aspirations of Sudanese people for a better life.

But unfortunately, Al-Bashir's deliberate neglect of implementing this regionally and the internationally sponsored document has led to escalating war in the conflict zones, increasing the number of displaced persons and refugees, and deteriorating living conditions in the country.

Also, the destruction of civil service structures, the intensification of ethnic and political injustice, and the deepening of the country's social problems were part of Al-Bashir's apparent mismanagement of the CPA.

Now, because of the regime's depletion of the state's treasury, two systems have been emerging in Sudan. There is a hidden system that Al-Bashir sustains with a full budget, where resources are exploited by all members of the Sudanese Islamic Movement (SIM) while the old formal state's system is running with limited resources for health, education, security, and development.

It should thus be clear that any efforts to put an end for the fragmentation of the Sudanese ethnical components should consider toppling the regime by radical change, which will preserve Sudan's territorial integrity.

There is no value to reforming the situation in Sudan in the existence of Al-Bashir's regime. For all these facts, the international community should not disappoint the people of Sudan, who place great hopes on it to support its quest for freedom, peace, and democracy.

The writer is a Sudanese journalist; he can be reached at salshua7@hotmail.com

May 31, 2018 (JUBA) - South Sudan's former humanitarian affairs and disaster management official Thursday has dismissed as baseless and misleading information reports claiming he had switched political allegiance and rebelled.

Joseph Lual Acuil Lual, said reports alleging he rebelled prompted him to make a clarification.

“I Joseph Lual Acuil Lual do hereby write this statement for immediate release that I have no support or allegiance to either the SPLM-IO (Sudan People's Liberation Movement in Opposition) led by Dr Riek Machar or the (opposition) South Sudan United Front (SSUF) led by former army chief of staff, Gen. Paul Malong Awan,” said Lual through a statement released to the public on Wednesday.

The former cabinet minister said he has s always been in Juba where he remained a strong member and support of the government under the leadership of President Salva Kiir.

“I have always and will always remain a strong member SPLM-IG (Sudan People's Liberation Movement in Government). I am always in Juba based in my house. Therefore, I refute all allegations as false and baseless misleading information. No one should take them as true," he added.

Currently serving as the member of the council of states and member of the national dialogue committee, Lual denied any link to rebels under the former First Vice President, Riek Machar and later joined the faction under the leadership of the former army chief of staff, Paul Malong Awan.

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May 31, 2018 (KHARTOUM) - Sudanese President Omer al-Bashir Thursday complained that his country is still is still under economic embargo and deprived of international debt cancellation for political reasons.

In remarks delivered before Khartoum state government, the Sudanese president thanked Arab and Islamic financial institutions, brotherly countries particularly China and Turkey for their support to Sudan.

"Sudan is still under economic embargo, heavily indebted and deprived of the international debt-relief program for political reasons. Also, it is deprived of concessional financing facility provided by international institutions," he said.

Despite the lift of economic sanctions last October, Sudan is still designated a state sponsor of terrorism together with Iran, Syria and North Korea.

Washington admitted Sudan's cooperation in its counterterrorism efforts but maintains the east African country in the terror list hoping to use it to put pressure on Khartoum to sign peace agreements with the armed groups, ensure freedoms, achieve democratic reforms.

The two countries announced several times their readiness to resume talks on the normalization of bilateral relations but till now no meeting takes place.

The Sudanese president pledged to provide the needed funding for Khartoum state's service projects.

After the adoption of drastic austerity measures in the budget of 2018, the Sudanese pound fell to a record low on the black market and the inflation hit new records.

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May 31, 2018 (KHARTOUM) - The Australian gold miner Resolute Mining this week struck a 22.5 million Australian dollar deal with the Canadian Orca Gold, subscribing for 32.4-million of its shares in gold activities in Sudan.

FILE - Smoke rises after a blast in a quarry at the Ariab mine September 28, 2011 (Reuters)

"This strategic investment by Resolute demonstrates and supports a rapidly growing international mining interest in Sudan," said Ocra in a statement released on Monday 28 May.

In line with the deal, Resolute will own 32,364,960 shares of Ocra, representing approximately 15% of its capital.

Gold production is now Sudan's main source of hard currency after the secession of South Sudan where are the two third of its oil reserves before 2011.

Sudan hopes to increase gold production to more than 140 tons during this year and make Sudan the first gold producer in Africa by 2018.

The Canadian company said with this deal it is now fully funded to deliver a Feasibility Study on its Block 14 Gold Project in Sudan and to expand its exploration endeavours on this 2,170km2 licence.

Ocra is currently completing a Feasibility Study on its 70%-owned Block 14 Gold Project in Sudan.

Also, it is conducting exploration on its gold properties in Côte d'Ivoire.

The deal also enables Resolute to acquire 1,876,422 shares of the Canadian company in connection with the acquisition of two exploration companies located and operating in Côte d'Ivoire.

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May 31, 2018 (KHARTOUM) - Amnesty International (AI)called on the Sudanese authorities to release a human rights activist deported from Saudi Arabia saying he is at risk of torture.

Hisham Ali (ST Photo)

Hisham Ali was deported from Saudi Arabia on Tuesday, and detained upon arrival in Khartoum at the National Intelligence and Security Services (NISS) headquarters.

"Having been a courageous political and online activist against torture and corruption Husham Ali is at great risk of torture and other ill-treatment while in the hands of the NISS. Pending his release, he must be granted unfettered access to a lawyer of his choice and to his family," said Joan Nyanyuki, AI Director for East Africa, the Horn and the Great Lakes.

Hisham was arrested in Jeddah by the Saudi authorities in November 2017 upon the request of Sudanese security apparatus. He contributed to various online forums to expose government corruption and expressed his support for the November and December 2016 civil disobedience in Sudan on his Facebook page.

There are three other Sudanese had been deported to Sudan from Saudi Arabia in July 2017, Elgassim Mohmed Seed Ahmed, 52, Elwaleed Imam Hassan Taha, 44, and Alaa Aldin al-Difana. All of them had been arrested following their participation in an online campaign to support calls for civil disobedience in November and December 2016.

All of them were arrested without charges for a period between one to three months before to be released.

"They told Amnesty International that they had been subjected to torture and other ill-treatment during detention," said the human rights body.

The Sudanese authorities at the time denounced the massive participation of the Sudanese Diaspora in the civil disobedience campaign and vowed to hunt the activists.

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May 31, 2018 (WASHINGTON) - The Security Council Thursday decided to consider within a month imposing arms embargo or individual sanctions on six South Sudanese including four top government officials in the event of a ceasefire violation or lack of a viable peace agreement.

The resolution also renews for 45 days the sanctions imposed in 2015 on those blocking peace in South Sudan.

The 15-member body in a resolution endorsed by just 9 "yes" votes said the Council would consider applying the sanctions if the parties violate the cessation of hostilities or fail to reach a viable political agreement before 30 June 2018

China, Russia, Ethiopia, Bolivia, Kazakhstan, Equatorial Guinea, abstained from voting on a draft resolution submitted by the United States. Those who voted for the resolution are Côte d'Ivoire, France, Kuwait, Netherlands, Peru, Poland, Sweden, United Kingdom, and the United States.

The final version requests the UN Secretary-General to report on the ceasefire violation or the failure to strike a peace deal in coordination with the Ceasefire and Transitional Security Arrangements Monitoring Mechanism (CTSAMM).

The resolution further decided to renew until 14 August 2018 the mandate of the Panel of Experts overseeing the sanctions imposed on South Sudan, with instructions to provide the Council with an update every month.

In an editorial published on the Washington Post on Wednesday, the U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley said the America administration was supportive for the new nation but "we have lost patience with the status quo".

In her speech before the Council, repeated the content of her editorial Haley and called for sanctions on "those who continue to destabilize South Sudan", adding "We must stop making excuses and take real steps to end the conflict".

Speaking before the vote, the Ethiopian Ambassador Tekeda Alemu said the South Sudanese conflict could only be addressed through an inclusive political process. He further said the IGAD efforts are at a “very critical moment” and the sanctions would be detrimental to the peace process.

Alemu further stressed that it would have been sensible for the Council to give IGAD a chance, and that "waiting two months would not have caused the sky to fall".

If the first version of the draft resolution provides the imposition of travel restrictions and an asset freeze with immediate effect, the resolution suspends the implementation for 29 days if the parties fail to sign an agreement or violate the cessation of hostilities.

British Ambassador Jonathan Guy Allen voiced his country support to the IGAD-led peace process adding it was clear that the parties were still not ready to reach agreement on peace as horrific reports of violence and human rights abuses continued.

“This cannot be allowed to continue,” he emphasized before to add that the resolution was an important step towards increasing pressure on the parties to compromise. "Let it be a clear message to the parties and those who wish to prevent peace going forward," Allen said.

The South Sudanese Ambassador Akuei Bona Malwal said the resolution imposing sanctions on South Sudanese officials was not helpful for the IGAD brokered efforts to end the conflict.

“There is a light at the end of the tunnel” in the peace revitalization forum, and "the annexe to the resolution was unhelpful in that regard. Nevertheless, the Government of South Sudan would work closely with regional partners to achieve lasting peace," Malwal said.

Juba says the sanctions would encourage the opposition groups to refuse to make needed concessions for peace.

The South Sudanese officials identified in the resolution are Defence Minister Kuol Manyang Juuk, Cabinet Affairs Minister Martin Elia Lomuru, Minister of Information Michael Makuei Lueth, SPLA Deputy Chief of Staff for Logistics Malek Reuben Riak Rengu, SPLM-IO Bieh state Gov. Koang Rambang Chol and former army chief Paul Malong Awan.

In June, the Security Council will discuss the security situation in South Sudan after a briefing on the Secretary-General's 90-day report on the UN Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS), together with his monthly report on violations of the Status of Forces Agreement.

Also in a related development, the SPLM-IO issued a statement denying that Governor Koang Rambang Chuol violated the ceasefire in Bieh State or denied humanitarian access to aid groups. Also, it denied his responsibility in the of two Kenyan pilots last February.

"Therefore, he does not meet the qualifications for travel ban and asset freeze as stated in Annexe 1 to the UN Security Council Zero Draft on Renewal of South Sudan Sanctions on individuals," concluded the rebel statement.

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The large-scale migration of people within Africa tends to boost growth and lifts the continent’s whole economy, a new United Nations report has said, urging the world to dispel misconceptions and “harmful narratives” targeting migration.

May 30, 2018 (JUBA) – South Sudan's army and rebels massacred civilians, burned children alive and gang-raped women, despite a ceasefire agreed upon in December last year, the Ceasefire and Transitional Security Arrangements Monitoring Mechanism (CTSAMM) said in a new report on the war-torn nation.

Arms and light weapons have been used by both warring parties in South Sudan to commit abuses (Photo courtesy of SSANSA)

The 14 CTSAMM are yet to be publicly released despite pledges by regional leaders to have those who violated the ceasefire agreement punished.

Both South Sudan government and rebels have dismissed the report.

A group of 200 South Sudanese government soldiers attacked the village of Nyatot in Upper Nile state on 12 February and reportedly shot at random everything and everybody, according to Reuters.

22 civilians were killed and 72 wounded, the monitoring team said.

Gordon Buay, an official at South Sudan's embassy in Washington, said troops had targeted rebels in Nyatot, not civilians as claimed.

“Any civilian killed in that was not intentional. It was crossfire,” he told Reuters.

The reports says an attack on the town of Modit in Jonglei state on 26 February saw government forces raze buildings, loot a Christian charity and kill five people, including four children who were burned.

“Soldiers stood at the door of the (hut) to ensure the children remained inside and they were eventually burnt to death,” it said.

One of the reports also accused the armed opposition forces loyal to the country's former first vice-president, Riek Machar of using child soldiers around the South Sudanese northwestern town of Wau.

Tens of thousands have been killed in South Sudan's war, which began in December 2013 with fighting been soldiers loyal to President Salva Kiir, an ethnic Dinka, and Machar, an ethnic Nuer.

More than 3 million people have been displaced due to the civil war, while aid agencies say about 5 million people are food insecure.

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May 30, 2018 (WASHINGTON) - U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley Wednesday called for international sanctions on individuals responsible for the continuation of the war in South Sudan and obstructing to humanitarian access affected civilians.

Haley made her call ahead of a vote on Thursday by the Security Council on a draft resolution she has submitted since Thursday imposing individual sanctions on three South Sudanese ministers and an army general, in addition to a rebel commander and the SPLA former chief of staff.

Referring to the four-and-half-year-old conflict in South Sudan, the diplomat recalled that the USA supported the independence of the new nation and invested more than $11 billion there since its independence.

"But we have lost patience with the status quo," she wrote in an article published on the Washington Post, calling for an action to end the armed conflict in the new nation.

"Sanctions on those who continue to destabilize South Sudan represent another critical tool at the Security Council's disposal," she stressed after referring to the arms embargo on South Sudan.

She said the targeted sanctions including ban travel and asset freeze, would ensure that individuals who threaten the peace pay for perpetuating violence in South Sudan.

South Sudanese government tries to get the support of the three non-permanent African countries at the Security Council. Also, Juba sought to reach Kuwait and Kazakhstan in addition to Russia and China which have the possibility to veto the resolution.

In a letter to Juba after an informal meeting on the draft resolution last week, the South Sudanese chargé d'affaires to the United Nations Cecilia Adeng was sceptic on her government capacity to reverse the vote.

"I am not sure if we have the numbers to stop the draft from being passed," said Adeng.

"The international community must come together to do what South Sudan's leaders will not: take action to restore hope to the world's youngest country," said Haley.

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