Africa

The security situation in Darfur, Sudan, remains volatile and the humanitarian impact of the conflict significant, the top United Nations peacekeeping official said today, calling on the Government of Sudan and the international community at large to address the current challenges in the country.

A look at what has sparked the biggest student protests to hit South Africa since apartheid ended in 1994.

Footage shows police using stun grenades and rubber bullets at South Africa's Wits University student protest.

Young men selling curious looking fluorescent bulbs mounted on pieces of wood is a common sight in Sierra Leone's capital, Freetown.

October 3, 2016 (KHARTOUM) - The national dialogue committees still disagrees on the new constitutional reforms including the post of prime minister and the increase of parliament seats, a week before the final session of the National Dialogue Conference.

Members of the national dialogue general assembly and President Omer al-Bashir attend the third session of the internal process in Khartoum on August 20, 2015 (Photo AFP/Ashraf Shazly)

The dialogue conference which will take place in Khartoum next Monday is expected to endorse a national document , comprising the principles of a new permanent constitution in Sudan.

Also, meeting will approve constitutional reform to be adopted par le parliament before the formation of the interim government which is expected to be established within 90 days.

''There is a consensus (among the dialogue forces) on the adoption of presidential system and the creation of the post of a prime minister appointed by the president. The premier has to form a government in consultation with the president," said Tadjadine Bechir Niam a member of the consensus committee tasked to reach compromises on contentious issues.

He further told Sudan Tribune that the disagreement over the post of prime minister is focused on whether he will be approved and held accountable by the parliament or the president.

Niam added that the governing parties support the appointment and approval of the prime minister by the president of the republic to fit with the presidential system.

Also, an official in the ruling National Congress Party (NCP) confirmed what Niam said, adding that the opposition groups participating the internal dialogue process want the prime minister to be approved by the chamber and be responsible before the MPs.

The source further said the national dialogue forces diverge also on term of the transitional government chaired by President Omer al-Bashir.

Niam said the recommendations of the dialogue conference would provide that the premier will be appointed after political consultations, pointing that the post would not be reserved for the opposition or a specific group.

Regarding the composition of the transitional parliament, Niam who is representing the Liberation and Justice Movement led Bahr Idris Abu Garda said it was agreed to increase the seats and expand the national assembly in order to represent all the political forces participating in the political process.

He expressed optimism to reach an agreement over the 13 pending issues before the General Assembly on 10 October, adding that the 7+7 committee will hold its last meeting on Wednesday 5 October . Also, he disclosed that a meeting headed by President al-Bashir will take place on Sunday to reach consensual compromises.

"On the 10th of October, the political forces participating in the dialogue conference will sign the final document and hand it over to the President," he stressed.

After what the government will introduce into the parliament the constitutional reform related to the creation of the post of prime minister and the increase of parliamentary seats.

"A National Consensus Government will be formed within 90 days, considering that the adoption of constitutional amendments may require 60 days at the worst," Niam added.

HOLDOUT GROUPS SLAMMED

In a press conference held on Monday, Presidential Assistant Ibrahim Mahmoud Hamid, slammed the position of opposition groups of the Sudan Call alliance saying they "confirmed their unwillingness to take part in the dialogue and they do not want a solution to the issues of Sudan".

The opposition groups held a workshop in Addis Ababa to prepare a joint position for a preparatory meeting supposed to place after the signing of agreements on the cessation of hostilities and humanitarian access in the Two Areas and Darfur.

The opposition groups said they would not accept to join the dialogue conference if the government did not fulfill the requested confidence building measures and threatened to hold their own dialogue meeting without the ruling NCP and to include the opposition Future Forces for Change (FFC) .

"This position is intended to evade the African Union Roadmap Agreement," said Hamid.

The presidential aide further said the FFC and prominent figures of the National Umma Party including Mubarak al-Mahdi will participate in the national dialogue meeting next Monday.

(ST)

United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has condemned yesterday&#39s series of attacks against the UN Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in Mali.

October 3, 2016 (NYALA) - Two people were killed by unknown gunmen in an attack against the headquarters of the administrative unit of Al-Malam locality, 100 kilometers north of South Darfur capital, Nyala.

A reliable source told Sudan Tribune that four armed men on two four-wheel drive Land Cruiser vehicles opened fire at Al-Hag Adam Ishag, the commissioner's driver and his bodyguard Mohamed Abdel-Karim while they were standing in front of the headquarters of the locality and killed them on the spot.

According to the source, the gunmen seized the commissioner's vehicle before fleeing.
He added that the security committee of the locality held an emergency meeting to track down the perpetrators.

Meanwhile, in press statements on Monday, South Darfur's police director Bala Mohamed Hussein said that four gunmen on an unlicensed four-wheel drive vehicle opened fire at the commissioner's bodyguard and driver in front of Al-Malam locality headquarters killing them immediately.

A security source told Sudan Tribune on the condition of anonymity that the security committee set strict measures to control the lawlessness situation in Nyala.

He pointed that joint patrol teams have been deployed to deal with the security situation, saying that tight measures were put in place to control movement of vehicles inside Nyala.

He stressed the security organs are capable of restoring stability, saying the unlicensed vehicles are the primary cause of the lawlessness situation in the state.

The same source accused unnamed parties of being responsible of the deteriorating security conditions in Nyala, saying the security organs would arrest all those involved in the incidents following the completion of investigations.

During the past couple of weeks, Nyala residents have expressed concern over the return of the lawlessness situation which prevailed in the town before imposing the emergency situation.

On September 27th, the gunmen killed the accountant Izz al-Din Saad when they attacked the municipal salary office of Al-Radoom area staff in central Nyala.

Two days earlier, armed groups looted Al-Wihda neighborhood in southern Nyala where 12 people have been injured after being beaten with gun stocks.

Also, on September 29th, a group of armed men shot dead the former commissioner of Baida locality of West Darfur State and the chief of Dago tribe in front of his house in Nyala.

Since July 2014, the governor of South Darfur Adam Mahmoud Jar al-Nabi, declared an indefinite emergency situation in the state, including a curfew from 07:00 pm to 07:00 am (local time) in Nyala.

The decision also banned riding of motorcycles by more than one person, holding weapons while wearing civilian clothes, vehicles driving around without license plates, and wearing of Kadamool (a turban which covers the face).

(ST)

By Tesfa-Alem Tekle

October 3, 2016 (ADDIS ABABA) – As Ethiopia began mourning the victims of the deadly deadly stampede that occurred during a protest at a religious festival in the Oromia region on Sunday, violence spread to many parts of the East African nation.

The deadly stampede occurred after police fired tear gas and fired warning shots into the air to disperse thousands of anti-government protesters who staged violent protest in the early stages of a religious event taking place in Oromia's Bishoftu town, located 40 kilometers south of Addis Ababa.

An estimated three million Ethnic Oromos from different areas of the vast region converged in Bishoftu to celebrate Irrecha, a popular thanks-giving day annually celebrated among the Oromo people.

Government officials and medical sources told Sudan Tribune that the death toll from Sunday's stampede had risen to over 50, with hundreds injured.

But opposition officials from the Oromo community claim the figure could be much higher than what was being disclosed by the government.

Three days of national mourning for victims of Bishoftu was declared by government.

A statement the Ethiopian government said flags would fly at half-mast across the country and at its foreign missions, starting Monday.

The statement said the national mourning was meant to “commemorate innocent citizens who lost their lives because of the violence instigated by anti-peace forces”

As the horn of Africa's nation mourns over the tragic incident violence however has continued in many parts of the Oromia region.

Reliable sources later today told Sudan Tribune that Oromo protesters and security forces have continued to clash in several parts of the Oromia region on Monday.

According to the sources, the anti-government protests have spread to many parts of the country's most sensitive region and violence is taking place in areas, including at locations very close to the Ethiopian capital.

Multiple sources said the protesters, on Monday, blocked roads, burnt vehicles and attacked public and government properties as the violence spread in many locations.

The Oromia region, home for some 40 million of Ethiopia's total 94 million populations had long been a scene of large-scale anti-government protests.

The Oromos say they are protesting against Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn government's decades of long political and economic marginalization against them.

According to Human Rights Watch report issued in June, Ethiopian security forces have killed more than 400 protesters and arrested tens of thousands more during widespread protests in the Oromia region since November 2015.

The rights body urged the government to support a credible and independent investigation into the killings, arbitrary arrests, and other forms of abuses.

(ST)

October 03, 2016 (WAU) – Two people were killed and 10 others injured by strong winds at a protection of civilian site in South Sudan's Wau state.

The roof of a clinic constructed by Medicins Sans Frontiers (MSF) was reportedly blown off as iron sheets scattered, killing two and injuring others.

“Rain started and shortly there was very strong wind whereby structures of the hospital was picked up, the fence fell down and what we saw was its structure taken by the wind,” said Abiel Peter Wawure, a MSF health workers at the protection of civilian site.

Margaret Ngogi said iron sheet off the clinic caused the injuries and deaths.

Meanwhile, all humanitarian agencies operating in Wau state have reportedly rushed to the protection of civilian site to provide needed assistance.

(ST)

General view of Juba Nimule road leading to Nimule Park and neighbouring Uganda (Pinterest photo)

October 3, 2016 (JUBA) – At least 3 traffic police officers and a village local chief have been killed by unknown gunmen on Sunday along South Sudan's main road linking the capital, Juba, to Uganda, police spokesman has said.

The killed traffic officers, whose identities have not been released, were attacked on a check point on Juba-Nimule highway at Nyolo, a village some 90km from Juba.

“The gunmen shot three [traffic] police officers dead and attempted to hijack [the] police car,” said South Sudan Police's spokesman, Brig. Gen. Daniel Justin Boula, speaking to reporters in Juba on Monday.

Gen. Boula said the gunmen ran to neighboring Nelo village as the police and the army were pursuing them, adding “The gunmen opened fire on a village and a killed Nelo head chief.”

Attacks on Juba-Nimule highway surged since conflict resumed in July in Juba between the government of President Salva Kiir and his former deputy, Riek Machar. The SPLM in Opposition often accuses the government of allegedly attacking their positions in Magwi county near the border with Uganda.

The government could not however name the source of the gunmen nor arrested any of them.

(ST)

October 3, 2016 (KHARTOUM) -The leader of the Sudan Liberation Movement (SLM-AW) Abdel-Wahid al-Nur Monday said that 1500 people were killed in Jebel Marra region in West Sudan due to exposure to chemical weapons by government forces.

In this photo released by Amnesty, the skin of this victim's back shows multiple circular wounds that appear to be from freshly popped blisters revealing fresh pink skin. According to the group, these circular wounds are consistent with exposure to a chemical warfare blister agent such as sulphur mustard. (Amnesty Photo)

In a report released last week, Amnesty International accused the Sudanese government forces of using chemical weapons repeatedly against civilians in the mountainous area of Jebel Marra in Darfur during the past eight months. The human rights groups said some 250 people were killed.

The assumed chemical attacks took place during a large-scale military campaign launched in January 2016 by the government forces in Jebel Marra against the Sudan Liberation Army/Abdel Wahid al-Nur (SLA/AW).

However, the Sudanese army spokesperson Ahmed Khalifa al-Shami denied Amnesty accusation and described it as false. Also, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Gharib Allah Khidir, denounced the “fabricated and unfounded accusations”, pointing that it aims to obstruct "the pioneering efforts" to achieve peace and stability and to promote reconciliation in Sudan.

In statements to the London based Alquds Alarabi newspaper Monday, the rebel leader said that 1000 women and more than 500 children died of the chemical weapons used by government force in its attacks on his forces.

“Amnesty International has conducted its investigation honestly and bravely,” al-Nur said.

He further called on Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Turkey to stop supporting President Al-Bashir regime.

“Al-Bashir regime is killing Sudanese people using chemical weapons and it is unacceptable ethically and religiously for these countries to support his regime,” he stressed.

Also he said he had recently met international officials in France and before met the U.S special envoy for the Sudan, Donald Booth and he reiterated during these meeting the SLM-AW determination to topple the regime and to achieve change in Sudan, ruling out any negotiations.

he further called on the international community and EU countries to support diplomatically and politically his group "in order to (overthrow the Sudanese regime) and to achieve freedom and peace for the Sudanese people."

Regarding the ongoing efforts to reach a negotiated settlement with Sudanese government, al-Nur said that SLM-AW rejects to negotiate with Bashir's regime because it committed atrocities, crimes against humanity and carried ethnic cleansing against Sudanese in Darfur, Blue Nile and Kordofan.

The rebel leader confirmed that SLM-AW has no contact with the Sudanese government as this implies that they participate in the "political game", as he said.

“We need a comprehensive solution, a change of the ruling regime, the departure of President Omer al-Bashir and the formation of a national government that works for freedom and equality, between all the citizens” he said.

(ST)

October 3, 2016 (JUBA) - At least 12 South Sudanese cattle keepers from the Dinka Bor tribe were killed in the outskirts of the capital, Juba over the weekend, officials said.

Young men herd cattle through the mud-caked streets of Pibor, South Sudan (AP)

Eight others were reportedly wounded in the weekend attack.

The incident, involving a Land Cruiser car, occurred less than 200 meters from the last army located south-west of Juba, survivors and the police said.

“The passengers were returning to cattle camp in Kajo-Keji County of Yei River State but they were ambushed and their car sprayed with bullets,” said David Mamer, who lost a cousin during the weekend attack.

Mamer said the bodies were retrieved from the forest by relatives, an hour after the incident occurred.

“Most of the bodies had bullets in their heads – a sign that the victims were shot at close-range when the driver had to abandon the car,” he added.

Most of the victims were from Bor county in Jonglei state.

Attacks on highways in South Sudan between Juba and neighboring towns are common – but not close to the city as witnessed last week.

The attackers, eyewitnesses said, spoke in the Nuer dialect, a claim Sudan Tribune could not verify.

A woman whose husband was killed said one of the alleged gunmen called her using the stolen phone and mocked her.

“He told me ‘we have killed your husband and you must look for another man,'” she said as tears rolled down her face.

Police said investigations are underway to establish the motive of the attack and bring the suspects to book.

“We heard the incident and we are still investigating,” said Police Spokesperson Brig. Gen. Daniel Justin Boula, adding that no suspects had so far been arrested over the attack.

The attack provoked criticism on social media – with users questioning government's ability to maintain the rule of law in the war-torn country.

(ST)

October 3, 2016 (KHARTOUM) - Sudan's National Intelligence and Security Services (NISS) on Monday has confiscated print runs of Al-Saiha daily newspaper from the printing house without giving any reasons.

A Sudanese man reads a newspaper as he waits to pay at a kiosk in the capital Khartoum, on July 31, 2011 (AFP)

A number of journalists working for Al-Saiha said the NISS didn't inform the editorial board of the reasons for the seizure of the newspaper's copies.

However, a journalist told Sudan Tribune on the condition of anonymity the newspaper was likely confiscated for publishing a series of Op-eds entitled “Notes in Politics and Good Governance” by former presidential advisor and chairman of the opposition Reform Now Movement (RNM) Ghazi Salah al-Din.

He said that Salah al-Din discussed in the last article the absence of democracy, transparency and good governance and its adverse impact on freedoms in the country.

Salah al-Din went on to say that the current political leadership in Sudan came to power by mistake, pointing to the leadership misuse of power and the missing opportunities of the Sudanese people.

Meanwhile, the Sudanese non-governmental Journalists for Human Rights (JHR) network has denounced the seizure of Al-Saiha, pointing that both pro-government and independent press are suffering continued violations by the NISS.

Al-Saiha is owned by the chairman of the Just Peace Forum (JPF) party and president Omer Hassan al-Bashir's maternal uncle Al-Tayeb Mustafa.

Sudan's constitution guarantees freedom of expression but laws subordinate to the constitution such as the National Security Forces Act of 2010 contains articles that can be potentially used to curtail press freedom and instigate legal proceedings against newspapers and individual journalists.

The NISS routinely confiscates newspapers either to prevent circulation of certain stories or to punish them retroactively on previous issues.

It uses seizures of print copies of newspapers, not only to censor the media but also to weaken them economically.

(ST)

October 3, 2016 (JUBA) – South Sudanese army (SPLA) denied having fought with the opposition forces of the SPLA-IO in Morobo county of Central Equatoria state, but admitted they fought with armed local youth in the area.

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

The SPLA spokesperson, Brigadier General Lul Ruai Koang, said reports by the armed opposition that fighting took place and they captured Morobo last week were not true.

“Those were the youths who have disagreed on social issues and start the fight there are between two to three-four youths and you know whenever two-three people fight and then it breaks into mass fighting others will just join it without knowing the motive,” Brigadier General Koang told Sudan Tribune over phone interview.

He blamed the spokesman for the opposition leader, Riek Machar, for allegedly “politicizing” the conflict between the civilian armed local youth and the government's forces in Morobo county.

“What I know is that it was mass fighting youths, it was not a political agenda but it was being politicized by James Gatdet who has been fanning flames of war from Nairobi,” claimed the SPLA spokesperson, who insisted the SPLA forces are in full control of Morobo and neighboring villages.

Brig. Koang denied that Morobo once fell under the control of the opposition or the local youth. This comes four days after he said his office did not receive any information about the situation in Morobo.

“SPLA is in full control of Morobo and it has not fallen into opposition fighters. They have no presence around that area and social disagreements are everywhere and it is good that fighting did not involve any weapons,” he said.

Earlier, opposition leader's spokesman, James Gatdet Dak, told Sudan Tribune that their forces captured Morobo last week. He did not however confirm whether their fighters have withdrawn from the town.

However, area residents who fled to neighboring Uganda over the weekend said they saw opposition forces in Morobo town. Eye witnesses said there are currently no civilians in Morobo because the area has been occupied by rebels.

In recent weeks, aid agencies and local leaders have reported clashes between government soldiers and forces loyal to former First Vice President, Machar, in several places, including Lainya in Yei River counties of the former Central Equatoria state.

Similar clashes between government and SPLA-IO forces were reported last week near Bentiu and Rubkotna, in Unity state, forcing nearly 30 humanitarian aid workers to withdraw from the areas of Nhialdiu, Jazeera, and Boaw.

(ST)

Female dandy Barbara Yves shows there is no need to be a man to join the sapeur fashion movement in the Democratic Republic of Congo's capital, Kinshasa.

October 2, 2016 (KHARTOUM) - Sudanese government and Sudan People's Liberation Movement -North (SPLM-N) Sunday wrapped up informal consultations meeting in Addis Ababa without any breakthrough on the humanitarian access file.

SPLM-N Yasir Arman (L) in a private discussion on the contentious issues with government chief negotiators Amin Hassan Omer (R) and Ibrahim Mahmoud Hamid at the venue of the talks in Addis Ababa,on November 22, 2015 (ST Photo)

Last August, the government and rebels in the Two Areas finalized a draft cessation of hostilities agreement but failed to agree on the humanitarian access as Khartoum refuses SPLM-N demand to deliver 20% of the aid through the Ethiopian town of Assossa on the Sudanese border.

The meeting, which was brokered by the Ugandan government in support of the African mediation team led by President Thabo Mbeki, raised hope that the involvement of President Museveni in Sudan's peace talks may help to narrow the gaps.

However the two negotiating teams on Sunday evening issued statements accusing each other of lacking seriousness to end the conflict in Blue Nile and South Kordofan, and said they are sticking to their previous positions.

In a press statement issued after the meeting, the government delegation headed by the Humanitarian Aid Commissioner Ahmed Mohamed Adam, said they put forward new initiative to deliver humanitarian aid in the rebel controlled areas.

The statement said that Khartoum purpose of the initiative is "to break the deadlock that characterized previous negotiations."

The new initiative calls for the formation of a joint mechanism involving the government, the SPLM-N, the United Nations, the African Union and representatives of national and international aid groups.

The proposed joint mechanism will assess the needs, and develop plans for humanitarian interventions. Also, the initiative will adopt a fast-track policy to accelerate and facilitate the access of humanitarian aid to the needy in the affected areas."

In return, the SPLM-N said the consultations were a failure, and blamed Khartoum for only sending "unmandated delegation" because it has no intention to make any concessions, while the movement had made several concessions in the past rounds.

The SPLM-N further said they stick to their demand for a humanitarian corridor through Assossa to deliver 20% of the humanitarian aid to the rebel controlled areas. It further said the new initiative is an attempt to mask its rejection of Assoss crossing point.

Last June, Sudanese rebel groups called on President Museveni to participate in the ongoing efforts to bring peace in Sudan. Following, what he met with delegations from the Sudanese government, Justice and Equality Movement (JEM), Sudan Liberation movement - Minni Minnawi (SLM-MM), and SPLM-N.

Museveni who reconciled with Sudanese President Omer al-Bashir agreed with the two parties to organize informal talks in Addis Ababa to support the African Union High Level Implementation Panel (AUHIP) in its efforts for a comprehensive peace and democratic reforms in Sudan.

The government accused the SPLM-N of seeking to distract attention from its intransigent positions through accusations and false allegations. Khartoum further said the SPLM-N behaviour reinforces its doubts about rebels' intention to use the aid for "non-humanitarian purposes".

The SPLM-N pointed to the recent accusations by Amnesty International about the use of chemical weapons in Darfur and the Two Areas, and underlined that consultations are underway within the rebel group on the "cessation of contacts" with the government until the investigations over this claims.

JEM and SLM-MM are also holding talks with a government delegation in Addis Ababa but none of the parties issued any statement until Sunday evening.

(ST)

October 2, 2016 (JUBA) -Urgent humanitarian assistance is needed for some 100,000 people trapped in the South Sudanese town of Yei, where the security situation deteriorated rapidly after renewed conflict broke out in the capital, Juba in July, the United Nations refugee agency (UNHCR) said.

Leaders of South Sudanese refugees address a rally at Bweyale camp, April 30, 2016 (ST)

“Until now, Yei has been largely spared from the violence and attacks that have plagued the country since December 2013,” William Spindler, a spokesperson of the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees said Friday.

“This is the first time that the population in Yei – primarily farmers living on commercial and subsistence agriculture – has become a direct target of violence, and on suspicion of their belonging to opposition groups. They urgently need humanitarian assistance,” he added.

Yei is situated in Central Equatoria state, close to South Sudan's borders with neighbouring Uganda and Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).

Sources say more than 30,000 people have been displaced into Yei from surrounding areas, following deadly attacks on civilians and looting of private property on 11 and 13 September. They reportedly joined several thousand others displaced from Lainya county since mid-July, and up to 60,000 town residents who remain in Yei with no means to leave and who are now in as much need as those displaced by the conflict.

UNHCR's presence there has been limited to providing protection activities and assistance to refugees from neighbouring DRC who live in Yei town and nearby Lasu settlement.

“The security situation in Yei deteriorated rapidly after renewed conflict broke out in Juba in early July and came to a head earlier this month, forcing thousands of civilians to flee their homes,” Spindler said.

Deteriorating security in South Sudan has forced over 200,000 people to flee the country since a fresh fighting broke out around Juba, the capital, on 8 July 2016, bringing the number of South Sudanese refugees in neighbouring nations to over 1 million.

In South Sudan, more than 1.61 million people are reportedly internally displaced and another 261,000 are refugees from Sudan, DRC, Ethiopia and the Central African Republic (CAR).

(ST)

October 2, 2016 (KAMPALA) – Members of South Sudan's armed opposition (SPLM-IO) youth league allied to the country's former vice president, Riek Machar in Uganda have disowned a group that recently abandoned the faction led by the latter.

South Sudan's rebel leader Riek Machar addresses a news conference in Uganda's capital Kampala January 26, 2016 (Reuters photo)

The armed opposition youth league head, Omojok Obac, said those who declared support for Machar's successor Taban Deng Gai are not genuine.

“[The] SPLM-IO youth league would like to inform you that the group who are using fake and ghost names are government supporters of Salva Kiir who want to create confusion in Uganda the way their tribal government created confusion in South Sudan,” he told Sudan Tribune from Kampala, Uganda.

According to the official, over 50,000 members currently make up the armed opposition youth league in Uganda, further stressing that those who declared allegiance to South Sudan's newly appointed first vice president were “fake”.

He said the entire youth league association still stood firm in support of Machar.

“We are warning the group of opportunists who are using the name of SPLM-IO for their own benefit [that] this is a great party with a great vision and many have died and sacrificed their lives to defend the name and dignity of this party,” said Obac.

The youth league secretary for information, Gai Bona, also described the defectors as self-seeking individuals who acted mainly for personal benefits.

“This is the time to say no to the corrupted and tribal regime of Salva Kiir whose motive is to spoil the generation from their welfare. We call on youth across the different continent that we have to liberate ourselves from power and corrupted system,” said Bona.

Machar fled the country in July after his forces clashed with those loyal to President Kiir, leaving over 200 soldiers dead in the national capital, Juba. He vowed never to return to Juba unless an intervention force, approved by the African Union, are deployed in the capital to restore stability.

(ST)

By Tesfa-Alem Tekle

October 2, 2016 (ADDIS ABABA) – Dozens of people have been killed on Sunday after a glamorous religious festival in Ethiopia's Oromia region turned into a violent anti-government protest scene.

The incident took place as an estimated three million Ethnic Oromos converge to Bishoftu town, 40 Kilometres South of the capital, to celebrate Irrecha, a popular thanksgiving day, celebrated among the Oromo's annually.

Since early hours of Sunday Sudan Tribune has witnessed that thousands of Oromo protesters had been chanting anti-government slogans and their arms crossed above their heads across the streets of Bishoftu.

However the religious event shortly came into chaos after a crowd of angry protesters assume towards the stage where prominent religious leaders had been addressing the gathering.

Protesters begun throwing rocks and plastic bottles and scuffle with security forces who had been blocking them from further pushing towards the stage.

But not too long, Police responded by firing tear-gas in a bid to disperse the protesters.

Police reaction led to a deadly stampede as panicked people try to flee the shocking scene with many falling and crushing into a deep ditch.

Eyewitness told Sudan Tribune that several dozens of protesters were taken to hospital after they were sprayed with tear-gas.

The Ethiopian government, later on the day acknowledged deaths during the event.

In a televised address to the public later Sunday, Ethiopian Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn confirmed that 52 people have died and many more injured during the Stampede at Irrecha Celebration.

However some opposition officials told Sudan Tribune that the death toll given by the government is far less and put the figure between 150-200.

The premier extended his condolences to the families of victims.

He promised to bring perpetrators of this tragic incident to justice and called on the Ethiopian people to stand by the government to realize the journey of Ethiopian renaissance.

The Oromia region, home for some 40 million of Ethiopia's total 94 million populations had long been a scene of large-scale anti-government protests.

The Oromos say they are protesting against Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn government's decades long political and economic marginalization against them.

According to Human Rights Watch report issued in June, Ethiopian security forces have killed more than 400 protesters and arrested tens of thousands more during widespread protests in the Oromia region since November 2015.

The rights group then urged on the Ethiopian government to support a credible, independent investigation into the killings, arbitrary arrests, and other forms of right abuses.

(ST)

October 2, 2016 (KHARTOUM) - Sudanese miners said they would submit a memo to President Omer al-Bashir demanding him to deal with the issue of their confiscated items and property as a priority during his upcoming talks with the Egyptian President Abdel-Fatah al-Sisi.

Workers break rocks at the Wad Bushara gold mine near Abu Delelq in Gadarif State, Wad Bushara on 27 April 2013 (Photo: Reuters/Mohamed Nureldin Abdallah)

In August 2015, Egyptian authorities released 37 miners after being held for 5 five months on charges of cross-border infiltration. But their properties estimated at eight million dollars are still held by the Egyptian Army.

Suleiman Ahmed Markaz, the head of the committee of the Sudanese miners told Sudan Tribune that members of his committee on will head to the presidential palace in Khartoum to hand over a memo to al-Bashir.

According to the memo seen by Sudan Tribune on Sunday, the miners demanded al-Bashir to deal with their issue as a top priority during his meeting with al-Sisi which will take place from 5 to 6 October in Cairo.

The memo pointed to the extreme suffering of the miners, saying some of them have been jailed due to failure to pay installments of the cars and gold scanning machines that were seized by the Egyptian authorities.

It added that the miners are counting on al-Bashir's meeting with al-Sisi and believe it resolve their problem.

The Sudanese miners were released after an amnesty issued by the Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi in response to Sudan's decision to pardon 101 Egyptian fishermen detained by Sudanese authorities since April 2015, on charges of crossing the territorial waters.

Although Khartoum has released the Egyptian fishermen with their boats, Egypt still holds the properties of the Sudanese miners for more than 10 months.

During Sudanese Egyptian consultative and consular meetings in Khartoum on February 28, the Egyptian delegation has committed to release the properties of the Sudanese miners but the pledges have not been fulfilled.

Earlier in June, the Sudanese foreign ministry said it would seek the support of the defence ministry to secure the release of the traditional miners properties held by the Egyptian army.

(ST)