Little late in coming:
"Both sides in Sudan political crisis praise power-sharing deal" by Fay Abuelgasim and Noha Elhennawy Associated Press, July 5, 2019
KHARTOUM, Sudan — Sudan’s ruling military council and its pro-democracy movement both welcomed a new power-sharing agreement reached Friday, raising hopes that the deal would end a three-month political crisis that has paralyzed the country and led to scores of deaths following a violent crackdown on peaceful protesters by authorities.
News of the deal, which one analyst said followed regional and international pressure on both sides, touched off street celebrations in the capital of Khartoum with hundreds dancing and waving Sudan’s flag as drivers honked their horns. The crisis has gripped Sudan ever since the military ousted longtime autocrat Omar el-Bashir in April.
The sides agreed to form a joint military and civilian sovereign council to lead the country during a transition period of three years and three months, said a statement by the Sudanese Professionals’ Association, which has spearheaded the protests. The joint council had been a sticking point in the negotiations.
The council will include five civilians representing the protest movement and five military members. An 11th seat will go to a civilian chosen by both sides. A military member will preside over the council for the first 21 months, followed by a civilian member after that, according to the statement.
That suggested a significant concession by pro-democracy forces, which had insisted that the sovereign council have only a civilian president, but the deal also secured a key demand by protest leaders: that they select the members of a technocratic Cabinet to be formed independently from the generals.
The creation of a legislative council will be postponed for three months, during which time the sovereign council will make the nation’s laws.
‘‘Today, our revolution has won and our victory shines,’’ the SPA said in the statement, which was posted on its Facebook page.
The generals also hailed the deal, with the military-controlled Al-Sudan TV channel playing national songs and rerunning excerpts of the news conference by both sides announcing the agreement, with the caption: ‘‘Congratulations to the Sudanese people.’’
‘‘This deal will be comprehensive and will not exclude anyone and will meet the ambitions of the Sudanese people and their victorious revolution,’’ said General Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, the deputy chief of the ruling military council, speaking at the news conference with protest leaders and African mediators.
The talks had collapsed when security forces razed a protest camp outside the military headquarters in Khartoum on June 3, and protest leaders said more than 100 people have been killed since then. In the ensuing weeks, protesters stayed in the streets, demanding that the generals hand power to civilian leadership.
Omer El-Digair, a leader of the Forces for the Declaration of Freedom and Change, a coalition representing the protesters, said they hoped that forming the transitional institutions ‘‘marks the beginning of a new era.’’
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First they split Sudan in two, and now one is left to wonder to whose benefit as a cornerstone defender of Palestinian rights has been removed.
A look back at the old era which will probably be viewed nostalgically after about 5 years (think Egypt):
"A one-day strike shuttered businesses and emptied streets in the Sudanese capital of Khartoum and other parts of the country on Tuesday, activists said, as pressure mounted on longtime autocratic President Omar al-Bashir to step down following more than two months of deadly protests. Initially sparked by rising prices and shortages, the unrest quickly turned to calls for Bashir to resign after two decades in power. A heavy security crackdown has killed scores since the current wave of demonstrations began in December, the most serious protests against Bashir. Many students, doctors, markets, public transportation, and other professionals took part in the strike Tuesday in support of Bashir’s ouster, according to photos and videos provided by activists and posted by the Sudanese Professionals Association. The association is an umbrella group of independent professional unions that has been spearheading the recent wave of protests. The opposition Sudanese Congress Party said its leader, Omer el-Digair, was released Monday after two months in detention. Digair tweeted Tuesday that he would ‘‘resume the path with our people . . . to freedom. We will not come back halfway.’’ The country’s intelligence and security officials, along with Bashir, insist that the rallies are the work of what they describe as ‘‘evil’’ foreign powers, and have vowed to stop them....."
It had all the hallmarks of a CIA-sponsored color coup campaign.
"Sudanese activists say 5 killed as protests swell" by Samy Magdy Associated Press, April 7, 2019
CAIRO — Sudanese security forces killed at least five protesters over the weekend during what organizers said were some of the largest demonstrations in a nearly four-month campaign to drive President Omar al-Bashir from power.
The protests, which began in December, have swelled since last week’s resignation of Algeria’s long-serving president in the face of similar rallies, giving new hope to Sudanese protesters aiming to end al-Bashir’s nearly 30-year reign.
Part of the New Arab Spring, and in Algeria's case the sick figurehead who was reelected five years ago is still ailing, so he conceded the campaign after the party dumped him and decided to quit altogether and they named a new leader and set a date for a vote (for the sake of the children, of course).
Security forces have responded with a fierce crackdown, killing at least 60 people since the protests began, according to Physicians for Human Rights, a New York-based rights group. That figure does not include the latest deaths.
France mowed down the Yellow Vests and I read barely a word.
The government has said that 32 people have been killed, including police, but hasn’t updated its tally in weeks.
Meanwhile, the Electricity Ministry said there was a nationwide power outage on Sunday, without providing an explanation. It said technicians were working on restoring electricity.
They are getting the Venezuelan treatment?
The rallies are being led by the Sudanese Professionals Association, an umbrella group of independent professional unions. Sarah Abdel-Jaleel, a spokeswoman for the group, told The Associated Press that four people were killed in the capital city of Khartoum and another protester was killed in the neighboring city of Omdurman on Saturday and Sunday.
The association says tens of thousands of people have taken part in protests outside the military headquarters and a presidential residence in Khartoum since Saturday. Footage circulated online showed the protesters chanting ‘‘The people want the fall of the regime,’’ one of the main slogans from the Arab Spring uprisings that swept Middle East and North Africa in 2011.
It's as I suspected.
Other footage showed protesters setting up tents in front of the military headquarters, which also houses the Defense Ministry, on Sunday following a call for a sit-in. The organizers say protesters hurled stones and security forces used batons, tear gas, and live fire to try to disperse the crowds.
Sudan’s national defense and security council, headed by al-Bashir, on Sunday said the protesters’ demands should be discussed and called for dialogue to end the crisis, according to the state-run SUNA news agency on Saturday.....
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Also see:
"Sudanese security forces tried again to break up an antigovernment sit-in outside military headquarters in the capital, Khartoum, killing at least 14 people Tuesday, activists behind the demonstration said. The deaths brought the total number of fatalities in the sit-in since the weekend to 22, including five soldiers, according to the activists. The demonstration is the latest in nearly four months of protests that have plunged Sudan into turmoil. What initially erupted last year as rallies about the economy quickly escalated into calls for an end to President Omar al-Bashir’s 30-year rule. On Monday leaders of the protests called on the military’s leadership to join their call for change. On Tuesday they invited military leaders to meet with their representatives to discuss arrangements for a transition. Major General Ahmed Khalifa al-Shami, a military spokesman, said the military has nothing to do with politics, and authorities ordered the protest to be broken up. ‘‘This sit-in could drag the country into chaos,” he said. “All demonstrators were pushed out of the area surrounding the armed forces’ headquarters, and this was done smoothly without significant causalities."
A couple of days later, they decide to cut their losses for Bashir was ousted.
"Leader of Sudan coup on US sanction list for Darfur genocide" by Maggie Michael Associated Press, April 11, 2019
CAIRO — Sudan’s defense minister, who led the overthrow Thursday of autocratic ruler Omar al-Bashir, has had his assets blocked by the US Treasury since 2007 for supporting and managing militias accused of carrying out genocide in the country’s Darfur conflict.
In a televised statement, General Awad Mohamed Ahmed Ibn Auf declared that the military had removed and arrested Bashir and that it will rule the country for the next two years as part of a transitional council along with the powerful security and intelligence agencies.
His appearance made him the face of military rule, and the general is likely to become the country’s formal leader, though the makeup of the council has not yet been announced. That has stunned and angered protesters who have been holding rallies for months demanding Bashir’s ouster and the establishment of civilian-led democracy.
Ibn Ouf, in his mid-60s, is a longtime insider in the leadership of Bashir’s 30-year rule. He rose up in the ranks to become chief of Sudan’s military intelligence and was made defense minister in 2015. Bashir named him as a vice president in February.
He was among other Sudanese officials placed on a US sanctions list for his role in the bloodshed in the western region of Darfur. Bashir was indicted by the International Criminal Court on charges of genocide over the conflict in which 200,000 people were killed.
The Darfur conflict began in 2003 when ethnic Africans rebelled, accusing the Arab-dominated government of discrimination. The government in Khartoum was accused of retaliating by arming local nomadic Arab tribes and unleashing them on civilian populations.
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It didn't take long for him to step down (with the Pope's blessing), as protesters demanded an ‘immediate’ move to civilian rule and Bashir was put in prison and charged with murder.
"Tens of thousands of protesters converged on the Sudanese capital of Khartoum on Thursday to pressure the ruling military council to speed up the transition of power to a civilian government as the new rulers announced the arrests of former president Omar al-Bashir’s two brothers on corruption charges. Military council spokesman General Shams Eddin Kabashi was quoted by the official SUNA news agency as saying that Abdullah and Abbas al-Bashir were taken into custody, without providing additional details or saying when it happened. The arrests were part of a broad sweep against officials and supporters of the former government. The Sudanese military ousted Omar al-Bashir last week, after four months of street protests against his 30-year rule marred by conflict, civil war, and corruption. Bashir is also wanted for genocide and crimes against humanity by the International Criminal Court for atrocities committee in the western region of Darfur. The brothers’ detention was likely another concession by the military to the protesters, who have demanded that all key figures and ranking officials from the former president’s circle be arrested. A number of Bashir’s close associates and former government officials have already been taken into custody since the military overthrew Bashir last Thursday. A number of them are also wanted by the International Criminal Court....."
At the same time, the US State Department said it supports ‘‘a transition to a peaceful and democratic Sudan led by civilians who represent the diversity of Sudanese society [because] the will of the Sudanese people is clear: it is time to move toward a transitional government that is inclusive and respectful of human rights and the rule of law.”
"Sudanese protesters said Tuesday that security agents loyal to ousted President Omar al-Bashir attacked their sit-ins overnight, setting off clashes that killed five people, including an army officer, and heightened tensions as the opposition holds talks with the military. Both the protesters and the ruling military council said the violence was instigated by al-Bashir loyalists from within the security forces. Over the course of his 30-year rule, al-Bashir formed a shadowy security apparatus made up of several paramilitary groups. The US Embassy, however, blamed the military council....."
I think you are starting to see who is behind the regime change, and the proof is the fact that soldiers and officers are being killed.
"Sudanese opposition leaders behind the protests that drove President Omar al-Bashir from power last month on Thursday criticized the ruling military council for suspending negotiations with their representatives over a peaceful transfer of power to civilian rule. The suspension dashed hopes of a speedy final deal between the military and the protesters that could resolve a standoff underway since the military ousted and arrested al-Bashir amid months-long protests against his 30-year rule. The negotiations were suspended just hours after both the military council and the protesters announced on Wednesday they had made significant progress in their talks. ‘‘The suspension of negotiations is an unfortunate decision and does not respect the progress reached during negotiations,’’ said a statement issued by the Sudanese Professionals Association, which has spearheaded the protests against al-Bashir since December. After the military ousted al-Bashir and took over the country, the protesters remained on the streets, demanding that the ruling generals hand over power to civilians right away....."
That was when everything came to a head:
"Security forces in Sudan attack protesters, killing 35, wounding hundreds" by Declan Walsh New York Times, June 3, 2019
Unfortunately, my printed paper carried the Washington Post version of the story that told me that the so-called Transitional Military Council is led by "Lieutenant General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, who has spent the past weeks visiting the leaders of Egypt, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates, who have made major financial contributions to shore up Sudan's economy during the transition, [and that] Burhan and his deputy, General Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, commonly referred to by the name Hemedti, were instrumental during President Omar Hassan al-Bashir's 30 years leading the country in recruiting young Sudanese fighters to reinforce a Saudi and U.A.E.-driven military offensive in Yemen, [while] Hemedti commands a state security arm called the Rapid Support Forces that is infamous for its role in an alleged genocide in Sudan's Darfur region over a decade ago."
So what we apparently have was a regime change operation, followed by the government and military calculating that they could toss Bashir overboard and retain control, which was then followed by the old double cross after their support in Yemen.
Here is what the Times gave me:
Sudan’s security forces stormed a major protest camp in the nation’s capital of Khartoum on Monday, killing an estimated 35 people and wounding hundreds, protest organizers said, in a day of violence that plunged the country’s once-hopeful revolution into chaos and uncertainty.
The dawn raids, led by a paramilitary unit notorious for atrocities in the western region of Darfur, appeared to signal that the military was intent on breaking the pro-democracy movement that galvanized Sudan following the ouster in April of the longtime dictator, President Omar al-Bashir.
Soldiers fanned out across the city from first light, opening fire on protesters, burning their tents, and thrashing civilians with sticks. The brutal crackdown came days after the collapse of power-sharing negotiations between civilian and military leaders over who should run Sudan during a planned transitional period.
On Monday, that transition was cast into doubt as Sudan lurched toward the kind of bloody authoritarianism that quashed the Arab Spring in 2011. The crackdown confirmed protesters’ fears that Sudan’s military, backed by the wealthy rulers of Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, was never serious about its claims to support civilian rule.
“All hell broke loose,” said Mohamed Azharri, 25, a doctor and protester who sprinted for cover early Monday, after gunfire erupted soon after morning prayer. He said he watched helplessly as soldiers beat an old man in the street.
Throughout the day, sheltering at a friend’s house, he followed with horror the news of mounting casualties.
Videos posted to social media showed soldiers firing on civilians or trashing the deserted protest zone. Bloodied protesters lay on the ground. Plumes of smoke rose over Khartoum as demonstrators blocked streets in some parts of the city, burning tires at barricades.
By nightfall, Azharri was vowing to continue his protests.
“We can’t let people die for nothing,” he said in a phone interview. “That’s why we are going back out tomorrow. This revolution is not over.”
Khartoum was on lockdown for much of Monday, with cellphone networks restricted and the Internet sporadically cut off. Protest organizers declared a general strike and called on the international community to shun the Transitional Military Council that has been ruling Sudan since Bashir’s ouster April 11.
Wounded protesters reported that the security forces were raiding homes in search of protest leaders and had dumped the bodies of slain protesters in the Nile.
Speaking by phone from Khartoum, a doctor at the Royal Care International Hospital, who did not want to be identified for fear of reprisals, said soldiers positioned outside were stopping medical staff from entering the hospital, where many of the wounded were taken.
The violence drew stinging condemnation from the United Nations, the African Union, and Western governments, but a more qualified response from the Arab nations that have sided with Sudan’s military leaders.
The US Embassy in Khartoum blamed the country’s military leaders for the violence and called for an immediate halt. “Sudanese security forces’ attacks against protesters and other civilians is wrong and must stop,” the embassy wrote on Twitter.
Britain’s ambassador to Sudan, Irfan Siddiq, who said gunfire erupted near his residence in central Khartoum, joined the United States call for a cessation. “No excuse for any such attack. This. Must. Stop. Now,” Siddiq wrote on Twitter.
What a surprise, Britain stands behind the United States.
The Western calls for nonviolence were probably outweighed, however, by the tacit support that wealthy Gulf countries and other Arab allies have given to Sudan’s generals since the protests toppled Bashir.
The rulers of Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Egypt view the popular revolution in Sudan as a dangerous example to their own countries, where the Arab Spring revolt of 2011 was either quashed or never allowed to take root.
Who remembers Morsi after he's been buried?
After Bashir was ousted April 11, the Saudis and Emiratis offered $3 billion in aid to shore up the military’s popularity and to strengthen the generals’ hand in power-sharing negotiations with civilian leaders.
In recent weeks, Sudan’s top generals traveled to the Gulf for talks with their allies, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman of Saudi Arabia and Prince Mohammed bin Zayed of the United Arab Emirates.
So it's a struggle between allies as to who will rule Sudan.
As the violence unfolded Monday, though, it was unclear which parts of Sudan’s fractious military and security establishment was driving the crackdown. The US Embassy in Khartoum blamed the ruling Transitional Military Council led by Lieutenant General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan.
“Responsibility falls on the TMC. The TMC cannot responsibly lead the people of Sudan,” the embassy added in its post on Twitter, but videos and eyewitness accounts pointed to the Rapid Support Forces, a paramilitary unit drawn from the janjaweed militias that carried out atrocities in Darfur in the 2000s, and which has now emerged as a powerful force in the capital. As the power-sharing talks have dragged on in recent weeks, Rapid Support Force soldiers have gradually fanned out across Khartoum.
The group’s leader, Lieutenant General Mohamed Hamdan, widely known as Hemeti and seen as one of the most powerful figures in Sudan, consolidated his power by meeting with Crown Prince Mohammed of Saudi Arabia.
For the protesters, the brutal operation to clear them from the protest zone was the moment they had been dreading for weeks.
Bashir’s ouster, after four months of street protests, brought tens of thousands of young Sudanese to the gates of the military headquarters in joyous scenes that celebrated the demise of a hated dictator and, they hoped, heralded a return to full civilian rule.
In the weeks since, thousands of young Sudanese have gathered nightly at the protest site for concerts, to hear speeches or just to mingle freely, savoring new social freedoms that were impossible under Bashir.
Yeah, as peaceful as can be with no harm intended toward anyone.
Despite punishing summer temperatures, the sit-in continued into the holy fasting month of Ramadan, which ends this week. The protesters enjoyed the backing of the United Nations and the African Union, which on May 1 warned it would suspend Sudan from the bloc if the military did not transfer power to a civilian authority, but political talks to end the crisis were scuttled by the military’s obduracy.
Opposition and military leaders have spent weeks arguing over who should head a sovereign council to rule Sudan during a transitional period leading up to elections that both sides agree should last about three years.
Burhan and the military have said publicly that they agreed to strong civilian participation in a transitional government, but insist that they should retain overall power. In an effort to break the deadlock, civilian negotiators offered compromises that included rotating power between civilian and military leaders, according to Western officials, but the talks collapsed, and the civilians showed their muscle by calling a two-day strike that was respected across the country. Monday’s raid appeared to be an effort to break that strength.
Analysts have long warned that Sudan’s transition to democracy, if it goes awry, could plunge the country into much greater chaos.
One of Africa’s largest countries, it is awash in arms after years of battle between the government and rebel groups in the Darfur, Blue Nile, and South Kordofan regions. The United States, which once led Western policy on Sudan, has largely ceded that role in recent years. Gulf countries are filling the vacuum, looking to safeguard their own interests.
For the Saudis and Emiratis, Sudan is a major troop contributor to the war they are fighting in Yemen. In May, Anwar Gargash, the de facto foreign minister of the United Arab Emirates, called for an “orderly transition” in the country. “We have experienced all-out chaos in the region and, sensibly, don’t need more of it,” he said.
Then they are not on board with attacking Iran?
Such statements stoked fear among Sudanese protesters that the military might try to forcibly disperse them, much as Egypt’s military did in 2013 when it killed more than 800 people in Cairo to end street protests led by the Muslim Brotherhood.
Which led to a coup by a Sissi.
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Nevertheless, Sudanese forces clamped down even harder.
"Sudan’s protesters launch general strike after crackdown" by Bassam Hatoum and Samy Magdy Associated Press, June 9, 2019
KHARTOUM, Sudan — Shops were closed and streets were empty across Sudan on Sunday, the first day of a general strike called for by protest leaders demanding the resignation of the ruling military council.
The Sudanese Professionals Association had called on people to stay home starting on Sunday, the first day of the work week, in protest at the deadly crackdown last week, when security forces violently dispersed the group’s main sit-in outside the military headquarters in the capital, Khartoum.
The protesters say more than 100 people have been killed since the crackdown began last Monday.
The protesters hope that by bringing daily life to a halt they can force the military to hand over power to civilians. The military overthrew President Omar al-Bashir in April after four months of mass rallies but has refused demonstrators’ demands for an immediate move to civilian rule, instead pushing for a transitional power-sharing arrangement.
An Associated Press journalist saw heavy deployment of troops from the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces in several parts of Khartoum and its sister city of Omdurman. There are long queues for fuel in several areas in the capital.
The Internet remains cut off in Khartoum and other types of communications also restricted, with reports of mobile network services heavily disrupted.
Security forces removed barricades from the main roads and opened the sit-in area outside the military’s headquarters for the first time since the dispersal. The SPA urged protesters to avoid clashes with the RSF.
Protesters have accused the RSF, which grew out of the notorious Janjaweed militias used by Bashir in the Darfur conflict in the early 2000s, of leading the nationwide crackdown. The SPA has called for the force to be disbanded.
The Sudan Doctors’ Committee, the medical affiliate of the SPA, said at least four people were killed on Sunday, including a young man who was shot dead by the RSF in Khartoum’s Bahri neighborhood. Two died of their wounds after RSF forces beat them and a fourth was shot dead in Omdurman, it said. The committee says 118 people have been killed since Monday. The military-run Health Ministry has offered a lower tally at 61 people killed across the country, including 49 civilians and three security forces in Khartoum.
The World Health Organization said Saturday 784 were wounded in Khartoum since Monday. The actual number of wounded however could be higher as not all cases are reported or recorded, the WHO said.
The opposition Sudanese Congress Party posted a video of what it said was a funeral in Bahri. ‘‘Blood for blood. We do not accept blood money,’’ the mourners chanted.
Other videos circulated online showed offices and businesses closed and light traffic, in both Khartoum and the Red Sea city of Port Sudan.
I was told the stuff has been cut off.
‘‘The peaceful resistance by civil disobedience and the general political strike is the fastest and most effective way to topple the military council. . . . and to hand over power to a transitional civilian authority,’’ the SPA said. It called on international agencies to refrain from dealing with the military council.
The SPA posted photos it said were of an empty Khartoum International Airport. It said airport workers and pilots are taking part in the civil disobedience.
The SPA said security forces have arrested and intimidated activists, bankers, doctors, air traffic workers, and other professionals in recent days.
‘‘Dozens of airport workers have been arrested by intelligence and the RSF since Monday. We do not know their whereabouts. New workers have been seen in the past days to replace those who took part in the strike,’’ an airport worker said on condition of anonymity, fearing reprisal.
They are called scabs.
The state-run SUNA news agency cited authorities as saying the airport was functioning normally and that all workers had reported for duty on Sunday.
The Sudan Pharmacists Central Committee, which is also part of the SPA, said RSF forces on Sunday raided a government health agency in Khartoum which helps supply medications and other care needs for patients across Sudan. In the past week, the RSF has been accused of targeting hospitals and health centers caring for wounded protesters.
The leading opposition Umma party said Saturday that security forces had arrested one of its leaders, Adel al-Mufti, along with other opposition figures, including Mohammed Esmat, a negotiator for the protesters.
Esmat was detained after meeting with the Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed on Friday. Ahmed met separately with the ruling generals and the protest leaders in an effort to revive talks.
A spokesman for the military council did not immediately respond to calls seeking comment.
Pope Francis on Sunday told the faithful in St. Peter’s Square that the news from Sudan is causing ‘‘pain and worry.’’ He prayed that violence would cease and that the common good would be sought through dialogue.
I wonder how many Sudanese were abused by his priests.
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"Amnesty warns war crimes continuing in Sudan’s Darfur" by Bassam Hatoum and Samy Magdy Associated Press, June 11, 2019
KHARTOUM, Sudan — Sudanese security forces have continued to commit ‘‘war crimes and other serious human rights violations’’ in the Darfur region, Amnesty International said Tuesday, as the African country has been rocked by political turmoil following the military’s ouster of autocrat Omar al-Bashir in April.
Amnesty is always Johnny-on-the-Spot when it comes to supporting regime changes.
The rights organization said the abuses in Darfur at the hands of Sudanese paramilitary units, the Rapid Support Forces, include the destruction of entire villages, as well as ‘‘unlawful killings and sexual violence.’’
Israel, Palestine, not a peep.
The RSF grew out of the notorious Janjaweed militias mobilized by Bashir during the Darfur conflict in the early 2000s. The militias were widely accused of crimes against humanity, and Bashir — now jailed in Khartoum — was indicted on charges of genocide.
Will they hand him over to the ICC to try and save their skins?
Even if they do, will they then follow him there?
RSF commander General Mohammed Hamdan Dagalo, better known as Hemedti, now serves as deputy head of the ruling military council. The coup leaders are locked in an increasingly violent confrontation with a protest movement that is demanding they hand power over to a civilian leadership, now that Bashir is gone. A spokesman for the military council did not immediately answer calls or return messages seeking comment.
Now it's a coup.
Ukraine was not a coup.
‘‘In Darfur, as in Khartoum, we’ve witnessed the Rapid Support Forces’ despicable brutality against Sudanese civilians — the only difference being, in Darfur they have committed atrocities with impunity for years,’’ said Kumi Naidoo, secretary general of Amnesty International.
Tell it about Israel and I will then take you seriously; otherwise, it's just another juman rights agenda-pusher.
He urged that the United Nations and the African Union ‘‘not turn their backs on people in Darfur who rely on peacekeepers for protection.’’
Like the Haitians?
He warned that if the UN-AU joint force, known as UNAMID, is dismantled and the peacekeepers pull out of Darfur, this ‘‘would recklessly and needlessly place tens of thousands of lives at risk by removing their only safeguard against the government’s scorched earth campaign.’’
The UN said Monday that Sudan’s military rulers issued a decree demanding the mission in Darfur hand over its premises as part of its withdrawal plan next year.
The UN is to vote at the end of the month about the future of the already reduced force. The target for ending the mission is June 30, 2020.
The Human Rights Watch said Tuesday that, based on the peacekeeping mission’s own reports, the Rapid Support Forces now occupy nine of 10 sites vacated by the UN force within the past eight months.
The Security Council ‘‘should halt all handovers, reassess downsizing plans, and refocus its attention on UNAMID’s core mandate to protect civilians,’’ said Jehanne Henry, associate Africa director at HRW.
Their biggest force is in the Congo, and that place is a bloodbath (I thought they were cleaning that up).
Whatever happened to that child sex ring anyway?
The New York-based group said the RSF violently broke up the protesters’ main sit-in camp outside the military’s headquarters in Khartoum on June 3.
More than 100 people were killed in the deadly crackdown on the pro-reform movement in Khartoum and elsewhere across Sudan, according to protest organizers. In response, the opposition started a general strike on Sunday, the first day of the work week in Sudan, in a renewed bid to pressure the military council to hand over power to civilians.
The Forces for Declaration of Freedom and Change, which represents the protesters, said Tuesday they decided to suspend their general strike and campaign for civil disobedience until further notice. They called on Sudanese to resume their work on Wednesday.
The military-run government did not appear to be softening its position. The strike was successful in the first day, according to protest leaders, but on Tuesday many shops and businesses reopened and there was visibly more traffic in the streets of Khartoum and its sister city of Omdurman.
Meanwhile, an Ethiopian envoy said negotiations between the military council and the protest leaders would resume ‘‘soon.’’
Mahmoud Dirir told a news conference in Khartoum on Tuesday that all previous deals between both sides have been restored and that the new talks would focus on the make-up of the disputed sovereign council.
Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed has been trying to revive negotiations between the generals and the protest leaders and has visited Khartoum.
The Internet monitoring group NetBlocks said that Sudan’s remaining Internet connectivity was disconnected late Monday. Internet had largely been cut off in the capital already.
The new disruption has downed Sudan Telecom’s Sudani service, along with Canar Telecom and Mobiltel Zain. Mobile internet connectivity has been largely offline since June 3, the group said.
Also on Tuesday, the Sudan Doctors Central Committee said that RSF forces attacked a market the previous day in the town of Deleig in central Darfur.
The medical group said it documented 11 deaths, including nine which it blamed on the paramilitary force members.
It said the attack wounded at least 20 people.
The committee is the medical arm of the Sudanese Professionals Association, which spearheaded protests against al-Bashir and is now leading a campaign of civil disobedience against the military rulers.
The UN humanitarian agency said customs offices at Port Sudan, the country’s main port, were open on Monday and resumed their functions with limited capacities.
Also the UN humanitarian air services operated as normal Monday, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said.
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"At least 7 dead as Sudanese stage protests against army rule" by Hussein Malla and Samy Magdy Associated Press, June 30, 2019
KHARTOUM, Sudan — Tens of thousands of protesters took to the streets in Sudan’s capital and elsewhere in the country Sunday calling for civilian rule nearly three months after the army forced out long-ruling autocrat Omar al-Bashir.
A government official said at least seven people had been killed and nearly 200 injured during the demonstrations.
The protests came amid a weekslong standoff between the ruling military council and protest leaders. Talks between the two sides over a power-sharing agreement collapsed earlier this month when security forces violently broke up a protest camp in Khartoum.
The ensuing clampdown resulted in at least 128 people killed across Sudan, according to protest organizers. Authorities put the death toll at 61, including three security forces.
Soliman Abdel-Gabar, acting undersecretary of health, reported Sunday night that at least seven people died during the day’s disturbances. He said 181 people were injured, including 27 with bullet wounds.
The marches, the first since the June 3 crackdown, also mark the 30th anniversary of the Islamist-backed coup that brought al-Bashir to power in 1989, toppling Sudan’s last elected government. The military removed al-Bashir in April amid mass protests against his rule.
The crowds gathered at several points across the capital and its sister city of Omdurman before marching toward the homes of those killed since the uprising began.
‘‘This is a very important day for the Sudanese people,’’ protester Hamdi Karamallah said.
The protest movement erupted in December, triggered by an economic crisis. The protesters remained in the streets after al-Bashir was overthrown and jailed, fearing that the military would cling to power or preserve much of his regime.
Osman Mirghani, a Sudanese analyst and the editor of the daily newspaper al-Tayar, said the marches ‘‘changed the equation’’ in favor of the Forces for Declaration of Freedom and Change, which represents the protesters. ‘‘Now, all pressure cards are in the hands of the FDFC. The marches corrected the situation,’’ he said.
On Sunday, protesters chanted antimilitary slogans like ‘‘Burhan’s council, just fall,’’ according to video clips circulated online. General Abdel-Fattah Burhan is head of the military council.
Video clips showed protesters running away from security forces in the streets of Khartoum and seeking shelter from clouds of tear gas.
On a highway leading to Khartoum’s international airport, a convoy of troops and riot police allowed some demonstrators to pass through as they headed toward the house of a protester who was killed earlier this month.
The protester’s mother was standing outside and joined the demonstration. They waved Sudanese flags and chanted slogans calling for civilian rule.
Mohammed Yousef al-Mustafa, a spokesman for the Sudanese Professionals’ Association, a leading protest organization, told The Associated Press that security forces used tear gas to disperse protesters in Omdurman and the district of Bahri in the capital.
He said protests also erupted in Atbara, a railway city north of the capital and the birthplace of the uprising that led to al-Bashir’s ouster.
The Sudan Doctors Committee, the medical arm of the Sudanese Professionals’ Association, said a protester in his 20s was shot dead in Atbara. Nazim Sirraj, a prominent activist, said at least four people were killed in Omdurman.
The association later called on protesters to march on the Nile-side presidential palace in Khartoum, as security forces closed off roads and bridges leading to the palace. The groups later said security forces barred the protesters from reaching their destination.
The FDFC called on protesters to head to other squares in Khartoum and Omdurman.
General Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, deputy head of the military council, said the generals want to reach an ‘‘urgent and comprehensive agreement with no exclusion.’’
‘‘We in the military council are totally neutral. We are the guardians of the revolution. We do not want to be part of the dispute,’’ he told a gathering of army supporters.
He said three troops from the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces were wounded during the protests in Khartoum. Dagalo, better known as Hemedti, is the leader of the Rapid Support Forces.
‘‘Our mission is to protect people and any peaceful revolution,’’ he said.
The previous day, the military council said it did not oppose the demonstrations but warned protest leaders that they would be held responsible for any vandalism or violence during the marches.
The African Union and Ethiopia have meanwhile stepped up their efforts to mediate an end to the crisis and reach a deal over setting up a new transitional government. Earlier this week the African Union and Ethiopia extended a joint proposal. The generals and the protesters voiced their approval but did not immediately restart negotiations.
Ditching Bashir wasn't enough.
The military council said in a statement that it submitted its response to the envoys, and that the generals are ready to resume negotiations on Sunday based on the African Union and Ethiopian proposal. Lieutenant General Shams Eddin Kabashi, a spokesman for the council, said it was hoping to reach a ‘‘comprehensive political solution’’ under the umbrella of the African Union; however, the Forces for Declaration of Freedom and Change, which represents the protesters, said talks could only begin once the military has officially ratified the AU-Ethiopian proposal. Al-Mustafa said talks would resume ‘‘directly after the military council signs the proposal.’’
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Related:
"Sudanese activists said on Monday that at least 11 people were killed in clashes with security forces during mass demonstrations demanding a transition to civilian rule. Tens of thousands of Sudanese flooded the streets of the capital, Khartoum, and other areas on Sunday in the biggest protests since security forces cleared a sit-in last month. They called for the military to hand over power to civilians following the coup that ousted longtime autocrat Omar al-Bashir in April. Nazim Sirraj, a prominent activist, said three bodies were found next to a school in Omdurman, the twin city of Khartoum. The three were shot dead in an area where security forces had barred protesters from marching and had fired tear gas to disperse them, he said. One wounded person died on the way to the hospital in Khartoum, he added. Sirraj said the total death toll was 11, including one killed in the city of Atbara, a railway hub north of Khartoum and the birthplace of the December uprising that eventually led to al-Bashir’s ouster. The Sudan Doctors Committee, the medical arm of the Sudanese Professionals’ Association, which has spearheaded the demonstrations, confirmed the death toll."
That was the last I saw of Sudan in my pre$$.
