Africa

With more than 100,000 people in Yemen believed to be at risk for cholera, the top United Nations humanitarian official in the country is appealing to Governments for urgent financial and political support

Two peacekeepers of the United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in Mali (MINUSMA) were killed and another injured on Tuesday morning in an ambush in the northern Kidal region.

The US and Uganda are stopping the hunt for notorious rebel leader Joseph Kony but he is still a threat.

Italy's coastguard pull a man to safety after he was left clinging to a ship's rudder in the Mediterranean.

Feelings are heightened in South Africa over the safety of women, writes the BBC's Nomsa Maseko following a series of violent attacks against women.

May 21, 2017 (JUBA) – The South Sudanese government has announced that the national dialogue, will convene on Monday 22 May after a long delay in order to include holdout opposition leaders.

Juba has warned the armed and non-opposition groups which have refused to join the dialogue, that any attempt to sabotaging the government-led political process will not be tolerated.

According to leading members of the organising team, President Kiir has given the go ahead to invite, accommodate and provide necessary logistics to the national dialogue committee.

"I am glad to let the people of South Sudan through the media know that the long-awaited national dialogue committee on which the secretariat has been working will be officially opened on Monday," said Daniel Awet Akot, the Presidential advisor on military affairs.

"This will not only be in Juba alone. It is a bottom-up dialogue and so a general national dialogue will start in all the states across the country,” he further said.

Akot went on to say that President Kiir who is the chairman of the process would just open the proceedings, but the real work would be done by the co-chairpersons.

The Presidential advisor told Sudan Tribune on Sunday that President Kiir had already met delegates representing several factions.

Akot's commented that the President would no longer wait for opposition parties, adding that he would extend patience but he would not allow the dialogue to fail.

He noted that his administration could not force opposition parties to join the national dialogue, asserting that any attempt to undermine it would not succeed because of the significant political and social support it has received in the country.

Meanwhile, the Presidential press secretary said in a statement, “the office of the President appeals to all the members of the steering committee, including Co-Chairpersons, Vice Chairperson, the Rapporteur, and two deputy rapporteurs, Foreign External Members, and the Secretaries to came to sign their names.”

The press secretary further reminded the Centre for Peace and Development Studies, Ebony Centre, to send the names of two members into addition to the representative from South Sudan Council of Churches which has been allotted three members and South Sudan Islamic Council with one member.

(ST)

May 20, 2017 (KHARTOUM) - The government militia Rapid Support Forces (RSF) claimed they killed the commander of the Sudan Liberation Movement Minni Minnaxwi (SLM-MM) during fierce clashes in North Darfur State on Saturday.

The RSF has managed to defeat the rebels and kill SLM-MM General Commander Juma Mundi, said RSF Commander Mohamed Hamdan Daglo, (aka Hametti) in statements to the official news agency SUNA on Saturday evening.

He added they also killed and captured a number of SLM-MM fighters without providing the details, seized six armoured vehicles and a number of armed vehicles with all their military equipment.

Hametti said they lost four militaries, including Colonel Hamdan al-Samih and a number of wounded.

The two parties traded accusations of breaching a unilateral cessation of hostilities they declared since last year.

The government says the rebels entered into the region from Libya where Khartoum claim they are based, while the SLM-MM says the government forces attacked their positions in North Darfur state.

The Sudanese government, Justice and Equality Movement and SLM-MM expressed willingness to resume peace talks in an informal consultations-meeting in Berlin on Friday 19 May.

The warring parties in the western Sudan diverge on the reference to the Doha Document for Peace in Darfur which is rejected by the two armed groups while the government says it is now part of the constitution.

(ST)

May 20, 2017 (JUBA) - Members of South Sudan's armed opposition faction (SPLM-IO) have dismissed as untrue reports that their leader Riek Machar was replaced with his wife.

Angelina Teny addressing the international Women's Day in Juba, March 6, 2013 (ST)

Social media was awash with news that Angelina Teny had allegedly been appointed acting chairperson of the armed opposition movement.

But Machar's press secretary Lam Kuei Lam denied the veracity of the said document, describing it as “fake and forgery”.

He called on all supporters, members of the movement and South Sudanese not to believe the "fake" document claiming Angelina was acting chairperson of SPLM-IO.

“The document being circulated on social media about the appointment of Madam Angelina Jany Teny, as acting chairperson of the movement (SPLM-IO) under the leadership of Dr. Riek Machar Teny, is a fake document,” Kuei wrote on Facebook.

The document, rebel officials say, could have been circulated by government officials. Such a document is similar to the ones supporters of the government of President Salva Kiir have always circulated, purporting them to have been done by Machar.

Political analysts have always interpreted the motive for the circulation of faked documents in the name of Machar as part of the political campaign using propaganda to foment discontent within the leadership, with view aimed at encouraging split and disintegration into ethnic and family factions unable to challenge the government.

Such political machinations are designed to weaken the support base of Machar as the leader of the movement and to portray him as someone selfish and pursuing personal interest in the name of advocating for change and democracy while his actions in appointments shows the opposite.

(ST)

May 20, 2017 (JUBA) - South Sudanese government forces killed 114 civilians in Yei, a town located about 100 miles from the capital, Juba between July 2016 and January 2017, the United Nations said.

Sudanese Peoples Liberation Army (SPLA) soldiers singing pro-war song (AFP file photo)

The U.N, in a new report, also documented various crimes of rape, looting and torture, allegedly committed by government forces in and around Yei town.

"Attacks were committed with an alarming degree of brutality and, like elsewhere in the country, appeared to have an ethnic dimension," partly reads a section of the U.N investigation report.

Yei, a relatively peaceful region until mid-last year, has lately been experiencing lots of clashes between government forces and the armed opposition troops loyal to ex-First Vice President, Riek Machar.

The U.N investigations report also highlights various cases of sexual violence, including rape, allegedly committed by pro-government forces on women and young girls in and around the town of Yei.

"In view of the restrictions of access faced by (the UN), the number of documented cases may only be a fraction of those actually committed. Some of the human rights violations and abuses committed in and around Yei may amount to war crimes and/or crimes against humanity and warrant further investigation,” it says.

ARMY DENIES ALLEGATIONS

South Sudan army spokesperson Colonel Santo Domic Chol has, however, dismissed the U.N report, describing it as “baseless”.

"This is not the first time the UN has accused the SPLA and tried to portray us as enemies of the people," Chol told Reuters.

“The SPLA is one of the biggest military institutions in the country and it accommodates people from different background and the whole SPLA cannot go out and rape citizens... so it has to be specific that we have seen two or three SPLA soldiers in such location committing such crimes,” he added.

The military official said President Salva Kiir ordered all army commanders in Yei to punish soldiers who committed gender-based violence.

Last week, two U.N agencies appealed to donors to step up support for people fleeing crisis-hit South Sudan as the $1.4 billion response plan remains 86 percent unfunded.

According to the U.N, the situation in war-torn South Sudan continues worsening, with a combination of conflict, drought and famine leading to further displacement and a rapid exodus of people fleeing one of the world's most severe crises.

South Sudan has reportedly now become the world's fastest growing refugee crisis with more than 1.8 million refugees, including one million children, having sought safety in Uganda, Sudan, Ethiopia, Kenya, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and the Central African Republic (CAR).

South Sudan has witnessed renewed clashes between forces loyal to South Sudan President Kiir and the armed opposition faction (SPLM-IO) backing the country's former First Vice-President, in spite of the August 2015 peace deal.

(ST)

May 20, 2017 (KHARTOUM) - Sudan's Armed Forces (SAF) and the rebel Sudan Liberation Movement (SLM-MM) led by Minni Minnawi have exchanged accusations over renewed fighting in North and East Darfur.

Rebels of the Sudan Liberation Army (SLA), loyal to leader Minni Minnawi (AFP)

In a statement extended to Sudan Tribune Saturday, SAF's spokesperson Ahmed Khalifa al-Shami pointed out that the armed forces and the security services have been closely monitoring the movements of armed groups “mercenaries” in South Sudan and Libya.

He said these rebel groups have been preparing to “abort peace and stability that have been achieved across Sudan and particularly in Darfur states”, pointing that clashes are still ongoing.

“The two groups entered North and East Darfur states from Libya and South Sudan simultaneously but the armed forces and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) have responded to them and clashes are still ongoing,” he said.

A reliable military source in East Darfur told Sudan Tribune that a fierce battle occurred between a faction of the Sudan Liberation Movement (SLM-MM) led by Minni Minnawi and government forces in the Eshairaya area, some 50 kilometres south-west of Ed-Daein, East Darfur capital.

He added the clashes caused panic among residents of Asalaya locality, saying the government troops responded to a faction that entered from South Sudan and was seeking to reach Jebel Marra.

“The government troops forced the rebels to retreat and are still chasing them,” he said.

The same source revealed that the government forces had inflicted heavy losses on the rebels, saying 25 rebels have been killed and at least 17 arrested.

He added that a number of four-wheel drive vehicles have been seized from the rebels, saying 5 government troops have been killed and 7 others injured and were transferred to Ed-Daein Hospital.

Meanwhile, SLM-MM military spokesperson Ahmed Hussein Mustafa said their forces have been attacked inside areas under the movement's control in North Darfur, describing the attack as “violation of the ceasefire”.

“In a clear violation of the ceasefire from the government side, an administrative patrol of the SLM-MM has been intercepted by the government troops and the latter initiated the shooting,” he said.

Mustafa added their forces responded to the government attack and inflicted heavy losses on them, saying the attackers fled the scene leaving behind hundreds of dead and wounded.

Last January President Omer al-Bashir extended the unilateral cessation of hostilities in war zones for six months. Also, SLM-MM, and the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM) in May extended for six months the unilateral ceasefire in Darfur.

SLM-MM has recently accused the government of preparing to launch a large attack against its areas, saying it dispatched 150 vehicles loaded with heavy weapons to areas under its control in North Darfur including Wadi Maghrib, Donky Ba'ashim, Hoash, Khaim and Majour.

Last week, RSF commander Mohamed Hamdan Daglo warned those who he called “mercenaries” against seeking to enter Sudan from Libya, hinting at attempts by rebel movements to enter Darfur after acquiring vehicles from Libya.

On 12 April, the Sudanese army declared Darfur a region free of rebellion following the capture of Srounq area, the last SLM-AW led by Abdel-Wahid al-Nour stronghold in Jebel Marra. However, the army continued for several months to carry out attacks on rebel pockets in the mountainous area.

The Sudanese army has been fighting a group of armed movements in Darfur since 2003. UN agencies estimate that over 300,000 people were killed in the conflict and over 2.5 million were displaced.

Doha brokered the Darfur peace negotiations which resulted in the signing of the DDPD by the Sudanese government and the Liberation and Justice Movement (LJM) in July 2011. Also, a dissident JEM joined the DDPD in April 2013.

JEM and SLM-MM have engaged in peace talks with the government under the auspices of the African Union.

SLM-AW, however, is not part of the African Union-mediated peace talks. The rebel group rejects negotiating a peace agreement with Khartoum government unless the government militias are disarmed and displaced civilians return to their original areas.

CALL FOR CONDEMNATION

Meanwhile, Sudan's foreign ministry has demanded ambassadors of Western countries in Khartoum to denounce the Darfur armed movements in the wake of renewed fighting between the rebels and government army.

In a statement extended to Sudan Tribune Saturday, foreign ministry spokesperson Gharib Allah Khidir said foreign minister Ibrahim Ghandour has held separate meetings with the envoys of the permanent members of the UN Security Council (UNSC), ambassadors of the Sudan Troika countries and the European Union envoy to Khartoum.

He said Ghandour told the Western diplomats that “Sudan's rebel movements which are present in Libya and South Sudan have moved across the borders to abort peace and stability that has been achieved in Darfur and acknowledged by the UNSC and the African Union Peace and Security Council.”

Sudan's top diplomat said the rebels move aims to drag the government to military confrontation so as to abort the unilateral cessation of hostilities declared by president Omer al-Bashir.

He demanded the Western envoys to report the rebel's move to their respective governments immediately, calling on the international community to denounce what he described as “hostile attack”.

Ghandour stressed the Sudanese government will respond to the attack and defend the country until achieving the comprehensive peace.

(ST)

May 20, 2017 (KHARTOUM) - The Saudi ambassador to Khartoum Ali bin Hassan Jaafar has revealed efforts by his country to achieve a permanent lift of U.S. sanctions imposed on Sudan in June.

The US imposed comprehensive sanctions on Sudan in 1997 (US Embassy in Khartoum website)

Last January, former President Barack Obama eased the 19-year economic and trade sanctions on Sudan. The decision came as a response to the collaboration of the Sudanese government on various issues including the fight against terrorism.

Washington is involved in a five-track engagement process with the Sudan over the permanent lift of sanctions on Sudan. Several agencies, including the State Department, have to present to President Donald Trump next June their findings and recommendations over the fate of the sanctions.

In an interview with the Blue Nile TV, Jaafar said Saudi Arabia played a significant role in the ease of U.S. sanctions imposed on Sudan, adding the Kingdom is “leading efforts to achieve full lift of sanctions next July.”

He praised Sudan's support of Arab and Islamic issues, saying “the Saudi government and peoples appreciate President al-Bashir's strong statements in which he considered the security of Saudi Arabia and the two holy mosques a red line.”

The Saudi envoy said the economic relations between the two countries would witness an unprecedented boost, hailing measures taken by the Sudanese government to promote Saudi investments.

“I am optimistic that the economic relations between Khartoum and Riyadh will grow so that citizens of both nations could feel the outcome of the integration of relations between the two countries," he added.

The Saudi diplomat's remarks coincides with a rare visit by the U.S. President Donald Trump to Saudi Arabia where he received a warm welcome amid preparations for an Arab-Muslim summit attended by 37 Arab leaders.

The Sudanese president didn't take part in the summit despite being invited by the Saudi government after Washington expressed displeasure with his presence at the summit and urged the host country to not invite him.

Khartoum has emerged as a close ally of the Gulf States in the last two years. Sudan participates with over 850 troops in the Saudi-led “Decisive Storm” coalition against the Iranian-allied Houthi militants in Yemen.

In February 2016, the Sudanese army participated in a regional military exercise including Saudi and Gulf armies, Egypt, Jordanian, Pakistani, and Sudanese armies.

Also, last March, Sudanese and Saudi air forces conducted joint military exercises in northern Sudan.

Saudi Arabia has the largest Arabic investments in Sudan which reached $15 billion in 2016. Some 196 investors from Saudi Arabia are active in producing fodder, wheat and sorghum, which are exported to Saudi Arabia.

(ST)

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French soldiers from Operation Barkhane stand outside their armored personnel carrier during a sandstorm in Inat, Mali, May 26, 2016.

© 2016 Reuters “The jihadists are the law now,” an elder from central Mali told me. “The very day the French-supported operation finished, the Islamists were back in the villages,” confided another villager last week, referring to a military operation near the Mali-Burkina Faso border in April.

The endurance of the jihadist recruitment success and their appeal to many villagers suggests that military operations on their own will not be sufficient to defeat the threat. President Emmanuel Macron should keep this in mind when he visits the country this Friday.

Hailed as a military success, the 2013 French-led military intervention in northern Mali ended the region’s occupation by ethnic Tuareg separatists and armed Islamists linked to Al-Qaeda. But since 2015, attacks against Malian forces and abuses by Al-Qaeda-linked groups have moved southward to Mali’s previously stable central regions and, last year, spread into neighboring Burkina Faso.

Since 2015, I’ve interviewed scores of witnesses and victims to abuses in central Mali. They described how, in recent months, groups of up to 50 Islamist fighters closed down schools, banned women from riding on motorcycles driven by men other than their husbands, and imposed their version of Sharia (Islamic law). “We used to spend days celebrating a marriage or baptism, dancing and singing together,” one man said. “Not anymore.”

Men accused of being informants for the Malian government often turn up dead. Since 2015, Islamists have executed at least 40 men in their custody, including village chiefs and local officials. Some were murdered in front of their families. Several people said they felt pressured to send one of their sons to join the Islamists.

However, an equal number of villagers told me they welcomed the presence of the Islamist groups in central Mali; they saw them as a benevolent alternative to a state they associate with predatory and abusive governance. Many seethed as they described Malian army abuses during counterterrorism operations, including arbitrary arrests, torture, and executions.

Since late 2016, I have documented the alleged extrajudicial killing by soldiers of 12 detainees, the most recent in early May, and the forced disappearance of several others. Villagers described how soldiers detained and executed three family members in January. “We heard gunshots in the distance,” one witness said. “I followed the tracks of the army truck and found our people in a shallow grave.” This week, I received a desperate email from the brother of a man forced into a white pickup by men in uniform on February 3. “We have heard nothing; we have searched everywhere,” he said.

While the behavior of the state security services has improved in recent years, Malian authorities have made no meaningful  effort to investigate those implicated in violations. The jihadists speak a lot about corruption… how the authorities steal, torture and do bad things to us. Honestly, they don’t need to try very hard to recruit the youth.

Villagers said the Islamists are recruiting by exploiting frustrations over poverty, abusive security services, rampant banditry, local Peuhl clan rivalries, and, especially, corruption.

“The jihadists speak a lot about corruption… how the authorities steal, torture and do bad things to us,” one elder said. “Honestly, they don’t need to try very hard to recruit the youth…”

Villagers also said the Islamists are increasingly filling the governance vacuum. They welcomed Islamist efforts to investigate and punish livestock thieves, including by executions. Others praised Sharia rulings in favor of victims of domestic violence or spousal abandonment. Elders from both the sedentary Bambara and pastoral Peuhl communities credited the Islamists’ efforts in late 2016 to resolve deadly land disputes. This meaningfully reduced communal violence in some regions, they said.

“We are fed up with paying bribes every time you meet a man in uniform or government official,” one villager said. “The Islamists get all this done without asking for taxes, money, or one of our cows.”

It was corruption, poor governance, and abusive security force conduct that significantly contributed  to Mali’s spectacular collapse in 2012. The burden to resolve this situation lies first and foremost with the Malian government. But the French strategy in Mali and the wider Sahel won’t succeed without helping Mali to address the issues underlying decades of insecurity and the growing support for abusive armed Islamist groups. Military operations, including those supported by the French, are not enough to pull Mali from this deepening quagmire.

When President Macron visits Mali on Friday, he should urge the government to professionalize the security forces and hold them accountable, to support the chronically neglected judiciary, and to take concrete action against rampant corruption. Strengthening Mali’s weak rule of law institutions is complicated work, but no counterterrorism strategy can succeed without it.

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Demonstrators chant slogans while flashing the Oromo protest gesture during Irreecha, the thanksgiving festival of the Oromo people, in Bishoftu town, Oromia region, Ethiopia, October 2, 2016.

© 2016 Reuters

Today, the European Parliament passed a resolution calling for a United Nations-led independent investigation into the killing of protesters in Ethiopia. Between November 2015 and October 2016, Ethiopian security forces killed hundreds of protesters, and detained tens of thousands. An overly restrictive state of emergency has been in place for the past seven months, and tens of thousands more people have been detained under it. Today’s resolution echoes a previous European Union parliamentary resolution, resolutions by other countries, and last month’s request by the UN’s top human rights chief for access to investigate the abuses.

Ethiopia’s government has always rejected outside scrutiny of its horrific rights record, insisting that it can investigate itself. Yet it has conspicuously failed to do so. Past investigations by the Ethiopian Human Rights Commission (EHRC) have not met basic standards of impartiality, including its June 2016 report into abuses during the protests’ first six months. In April 2017, the EHRC acknowledged that 669 people were killed in an oral report to parliament, but found that security forces had used excessive force in just a few situations. This stands in stark contrast to what Human Rights Watch and other organizations have found, drawing on evidence that includes a wealth of video and photographic material. The EHRC hasn’t publicly released a version of their findings, so it’s impossible to assess their methodology or learn how they reached their conclusions.

International experts having access to areas where protests occurred and to people still in detention are important first steps towards meaningful investigations. But there are other obstacles too, like victims and witnesses being too afraid to speak out about government abuses. Thousands of Ethiopians have fled the country since the protests, seeking asylum in bordering countries. They too should be part of investigations into what happened, from locations where they may be more free to speak without fear.

Today’s resolution specifically calls on Federica Mogherini, the EU’s top diplomat, to “mobilise EU Member States” to urgently pursue the setting up of the UN-led international inquiry, and they can take the first step towards this at the upcoming Human Rights Council session next month in Geneva.

It’s hoped that implementing today’s timely resolution can help address the pervasive culture of impunity in Ethiopia. The resolution also reiterates the EU’s recognition of the importance of justice to ensure Ethiopia’s long-term stability. To the many victims of Ethiopia’s brutality, a UN-led inquiry could at least begin to answer pleas for justice that too often have gone unheard.

May 19, 2017 (JUBA) - The United Nations has released a new report on the human rights violations and abuses against civilians in Yei town in Central Equatoria stressing it may amount to war crimes or crimes against humanity.

The report which is jointly released by the United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) and the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) covers the period of July 2016 and January 2017.

Yei had been a largely peaceful town, with between 200,000 and 300,000 residents of many different ethnicities, until July 2016, when violence erupted between Government and opposition forces, which led to the departure of opposition leader Riek Machar into the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

“The conflict in Yei, in particular, highlights the startling level of impunity in South Sudan, which has fed successive cycles of violence across the country,” said the report, which contains the findings of an in-depth investigation into violations committed in and around the Central Equatoria town, located 150 kilometres southwest of the capital, Juba.

The report documents 114 cases where the SPLA and allied militias arbitrarily killed civilians for their alleged support to the SPLM/A In Opposition.

These cases included attacks on funerals and indiscriminate shelling of civilians; cases of sexual violence perpetrated against women and girls, including those fleeing fighting; often committed in front of the victims' families and with a shocking degree of brutality, said the report.

The UNMISS and HCR pointed that the rebel groups are also responsible for human rights abuses. "The extent of these abuses remains unclear given the Government prevented HRD from accessing areas where armed opposition forces were active".

The two bodies reiterated their call to end the war and urged the transitional government led by President Salva Kiir to investigate and prosecute those believed to be responsible for gross human rights violations and abuses.

The Transitional Government of National Unity "must also ensure that victims whose human rights have been violated have access to an effective remedy, including just, fair and gender-sensitive reparations," the report says.

(ST)

May 19, 2017 (KHARTOUM) - In a two-day meeting held in Berlin, the Sudanese government and two main armed groups in Darfur showed interest to resume talks on Darfur conflict but they failed on how to refer to the Doha Document for Peace in Darfur (DDPD).

The informal consultations meeting from 18-18 May, included Amin Hassan Omer, the government chief negotiator, Gibril Ibrahim, leader of the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM), Minni Minnawi leader of the Sudan Liberation Movement (SLM-MM). Also, participated in the meeting Ahmed Tugud and Ali Trayo, the chief negotiators of the two groups.

The meeting which was attended by officials from the German government and the U.S. administration aimed at bridging the gaps between the two sides over the DDDPD. The government says any agreement should be on the basis of this framework agreement, while the holdout groups say want a new peace process.

"Both sides said interested in resuming negotiations and demonstrated a lot of openness on what can be negotiated," a source close to the discussions told Sudan tribune on Friday after the end of the meeting.

"However the parties are still at odds on how exactly we can refer to the DDPD," he further said.

During a meeting held in Doha last December including the Sudanese and Qatari government, the former U.S. special envoy and UNAMID, it was agreed to consider the rebel demand for talks on issues already included in the DDPD including compensations and land ownership.

It was also agreed that such deal would be in a special annexe attached to the DDPD.

In a statement released after the meeting, Omer said the German government presented a proposal to narrow the gaps on the positions of the two sides from the DDPD. Also, it disclosed a proposal from the two groups.

"The meeting was characterised by a positive spirit despite the disagreement ( over the DDPD). The German side has offered a proposal for facilitating a rejuvenation of peace efforts in Darfur region, along with another proposal presented by the two armed movements," he said.

"We believe that we can move ahead with the valuable assistance of Germany and other peace-loving nations," he further stressed.

Trayo and Tugud in their statement said "the two movements presented a proposal to push forward the peace process" adding "it was accepted by the facilitators as a working paper", and they would continue consultations on it with the two parties.

The government and the two groups failed in August 2016 to sign a cessation of hostilities for humanitarian purpose as JEM and SLM-MM demanded that Khartoum accepts clearly it would engage in peace negotiations without referring to the DDPD.

UNAMID head who is also tasked with the peace file in Darfur held, earlier this month, a meeting with the two groups in Paris where they handed him over a position paper on the peace negotiations.

(ST)

United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres is deeply concerned about the military escalation at the Brak al-Shati air base in southern Libya and calls on all parties to exercise restraint and restore calm, the UN chief&#39s spokesman said today.

Why a bitter row has broken out between Egyptians and Sudanese on social media.

May 19, 2017 (KHARTOUM) - The governor of Blue Nile state has told the United Nations independent expert on the situation of human rights in the Sudan, Aristide Nononsi the Sudan People's Liberation Movement/North (SPLM-N) obstructs the child vaccination programme in areas under its control.

The UN expert is visiting Sudan from 11-21 May to carry out his fourth mission to the country so as to continue his engagement with the Sudanese authorities and discuss the implementation of his recommendations.

Blue Nile governor Hussein Yassen Hamad Friday said he briefed Nononsi on the security situation in the state, stressing Sudan's army adherence to the unilateral ceasefire declared by President Omer al-Bashir.

He said the SPLM-N is not serious about achieving peace, pointing to its rejection for the child vaccination campaign in areas under its control besides its continued attacks against farmers, cattle herders and humanitarian workers.

Hamad stressed his government's commitment to the U.S. humanitarian proposal, pointing to humanitarian and IDP's challenges facing his state and the need for the international community to support peace, stability and development.

He called for the need to double the contribution of the international community in water harvest and returnees support programs.

The Sudanese army has been fighting the Sudan People's Liberation Movement/North (SPLM-N) in the South Kordofan and Blue Nile states, also known as the Two Areas since 2011.

Talks between the two sides for a cessation of hostilities and humanitarian access are stalled since last August. The SPLM-N demands to deliver 20% of the humanitarian assistance through a humanitarian corridor from Asosa, an Ethiopian border town.

But the government rejects the idea saying it is a breach of the state sovereignty and a manoeuvre from the rebels to bring arms and ammunition to their locked rebel-held areas in the Two Areas.

The SPLM-N last November declined an American proposal to transport humanitarian medical assistance directly to the civilians in the rebel-held areas in the Blue Nile and South Kordofan.

According to the official news agency SUNA, Nononsi said the international community is keen to support efforts to achieve peace, stability and development in the state.

According to the U.N., the independent expert on Sudan will meet with relevant stakeholders, including the Sudanese authorities, civil society actors, academia, community leaders, members of the diplomatic corps, and UN entities to ensure all relevant information is reflected in his next report to the U.N Human Rights Council (HRC).

As part of his eleventh day visit, Nononsi, who was invited by the Sudanese government, will hold a series of meetings in Khartoum and Blue Nile.

Meanwhile, the independent expert is expected to present his findings and recommendations to the U.N Human Rights Council in September 2017.

(ST)

May 19, 2017 (JUBA) - A general in the South Sudan army (SPLA) has been accused of taking side in a recent communal feud that resulted in the death of over ten people.

South Sudanese SPLA soldiers are pictured in Pageri in Eastern Equatoria state on August 20, 2015 (Photo AFP/Samir Bol)

Dinka Bor and Mundri have used to trade accusations of using weapons belonging to the national army SPLA or claim the involvement of soldiers from the rival tribes in the clashes over ownership and use of natural resources.

This time, the Major General Malual Majok, head of the mechanised unit in the Sudan People's Liberation Army (SPLA) at the general headquarters in Juba is personally accused of taking side in favour of his ethnic Dinka Bor in clashes occurred earlier this month with the Mundri.

According to a statement by Mundari Global Community on 8th May 2017, General Majok, allegedly allowed arms and personnel under his direct command in a purported coordination with the division commander based in his home Bor to carry attacks on civilian settlements inhabited by ethnic Mundri in Central Equatoria region.

“A motor boat carrying the riverine forces and the SPLA division 8 under the command of Malual Majok were dispatched from Gondokoro through Mongala. The riverine forces attacked civilians in the island of Korchomba and Gumeiza, terrorised, displaced civilians and (caused) massive destructions,” the statement reads in part.

The motives for which a top military officer took side in the communal feud remain unclear. Sudan Tribune was unable to reach him for comments despite several attempts. Military colleagues and relatives denied his involvement, describing the allegations as false and as a "smear propaganda".

Ethnic conflicts and rivalry over grazing lands in South Sudan have often been attributed to actors primarily divided by cultural and ethnic lines.

Long-standing herder-farmer conflicts, typically involving disputes over land and/or cattle between herders and farmers in the states of Jonglei, parts of former Warrap state, Lakes, parts of former unity have killed thousands of people and displaced tens of thousands more.

Analysts agree that the conflicts between the Dinka-Bor and Mundari over the natural resources have been transformed into violent political conflicts over the years.

(ST)

May 19, 2017 (YAMBIO) – At least seven people have been killed in Rirangu Payam of Yambio County by unknown gunmen during the past two days creating panic among farmers in South Sudan's Gbudue State

Members of the SSLMN and South Sudan government in Yambio April 02, 2016 (ST)

An eyewitness told Sudan Tribune on Friday that many people have been killed by unidentified armed men in uniform in Rirangu. The victims are mostly the farmers who went to the area to cultivate their lands.

“Over seven people have been killed by unknown men wearing military uniform in Rirangu area (...) and I have seen five bodies being brought to Yambio town on Motorcycles and more bodies still lying on the ground,” he said.

The Source said, there was heavy gunshot during the past two days and the farmers returned, running, to the town fearing for their lives stressing the gunmen were shooting indiscriminately killing civilians in a brutal way.

He mentioned that people along the road are pointing an accusing figure at government forces heading to Rirangu where armed group under Alfred Futiyo were based saying they confused between civilians who are cultivating in the area and the armed group.

Efforts to reach the state government officials for comment on the allegation were fruitless.

Calm has returned to Yambio since several months now and the hostile area of Rirangu was also pacified after an appeal from the Governor of Gbudue State Daniel Badagbu to silence the guns and join him to bring peace in the state and to end the suffering of civilians.

Many people have been killed, properties were looted, forcing thousands of civilians to flee their homes to the IDPs camp or seeking refuge outside South Sudan.

The killing in Rirangu surprised people who are living in the town because hundreds of armed elements continue to surrender to the government while the security situation has improved greatly.

(ST)