SUDAN NEWS ALERT: Multiple sources – Sudanese general questions the political framework agreement

5/2/2023: Multiple sources – Sudanese general questions the political framework agreement

•   Sudan Tribune

•   Radio Dabanga

Member of the Sovereignty Council, Lt Gen Shamseldin Kabbashi, says that the Sudanese army will not proceed with the Framework Agreement unless it is signed by a sufficient number of political parties and groups.

Kabbashi said “we will not protect a constitution signed by 10 men,” and that the agreement’s signatories do not constitute a sufficient majority to solve the political crisis in Sudan.

The Forces for Freedom and Change-Central Council (FFC-CC), which signed the agreement with the military, maintains that only certain parties are entitled to sign it as it refuses to “flood the political process” with parties it says are not interested in democracy, such as the FFC-Democratic Block (which backed the 2021 military coup).

Siddig Tawir, prominent member of the Socialist Arab Ba’ath Party and member of the pre-coup Sovereignty Council described Kabbashi’s speech as “an expression of his anti-democratic behaviour”.

SUDAN NEWS ALERT: Sudan Tribune - SLM-AW repulsed fresh attack by Sudanese forces in Jebel Marra: spokesman

5/2/2021: Sudan Tribune - SLM-AW repulsed fresh attack by Sudanese forces in Jebel Marra: spokesman

 Sudan Tribune report that Sudan Liberation Movement, led by Abdelwahid al-Nur, (SLM-AW) accused a "government militia" of launching a third attack in ten days on their positions in Jebel Marra, following alleged attacks on January 25 and 31.

SLM-AW spokesperson Walid Mohamed Abaker "Tongo" claimed that the group killed 24 members of attacking forces, captured a soldier and seized weapons. Tongo accused the Sudanese army’s Military Intelligence of planning and supporting the attacks carried out by militias, considering this "an explicit declaration of war."

"Our unilateral commitment the cessation of hostilities is not a sign of weakness but rather a commitment to the decisions and directives of the movement’s leadership," he added.

Tongo warned the Transitional Government, with its military and civilian components, against the consequences of attacks by militias affiliated with the government.

SUDAN NEWS ALERT: Reuters - Sudan will decide to float currency once it has sufficient reserves, finance minister says

5/2/2021: Reuters - Sudan will decide to float currency once it has sufficient reserves, finance minister says, by Khalid Abdelaziz

 Reuters report that Sudan will decide to float its currency once it has sufficient foreign reserves, and is also in talks with several parties to secure loans and grants, the then-acting finance minister Hiba Mohammed Ali said. "The timing for floating the currency is determined by having the appropriate circumstances [to prevent] a big jump in the exchange rate," she added.

With Sudan facing fuel, bread and electricity shortages and inflation at 254%, debt relief would free up access to further financing. Ali said Sudan was in talks with the IMF and U.S. Treasury Department, and was also in negotiations for $2 billion in financing from the World Bank. A source close to the negotiations cautioned that Sudan's arrears to the World Bank still needed to be cleared.

Ali also said the government will begin to roll out a family support programme that aims to cover 80% of the population.

SUDAN NEWS ALERT: Sudan Tribune - Head of Sudan’s anti-corruption body resigns over criticism

5/2/2021: Sudan Tribune - Head of Sudan’s anti-corruption body resigns over criticism

 Sudan Tribune report that the Chairman of the Empowerment Removal Committee, Lt Gen Yasir al-Atta submitted his resignation after repeated criticism directed against the anti-corruption body by some government officials. The Committee is tasked with dismantling the companies and investments of the former regime, its party, dignitaries and al-Bashir’s family.

Recently, the committee’s spokesman Salah Manna accused the General Attorney Taj Elsir al-Hebir of obstructing their action.

 Observers in Khartoum say there is no clear separation of power between the transitional government institutions. Further, the power struggle between the military component and the civilian cabinet created power-vacuum zones and aggravated cases of the dispute of power between different authorities.

 Manna had accused the head of the Sovereign Council al-Burhan and Rapid Support Forces commander Himedti of ordering the release of the wife of the ousted dictator Omar al-Bashir, Widad Babiker, without consulting them.

SUDAN NEWS ALERT: Bloomberg - Sudan Will See Benefits From Israeli Meeting, Al-Burhan Says

5/2/2020: Bloomberg - Sudan Will See Benefits From Israeli Meeting, Al-Burhan Says, by Mohammed Alamin

Bloomberg reports that Abdelfattah al-Burhan, the head of Sudan’s ruling sovereign council, said the benefits of his meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will be apparent soon.

Al-Burhan told Arab TV stations that the aim of the talks with Netanyahu was to help alleviate Sudan’s economic plight, which he attributed to Sudan’s designation as a state sponsor of terrorism by the US.

Al-Burhan also said he had notified Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok ahead of the meeting, which the US arranged. Information Minister Faisal Mohammed Salih previously said the government had not received advance notice.

The Sudanese Professionals Association denounced al-Burhan’s meeting, saying that normalisation with Israel was a serious decision that should not be taken by a transitional government.

SUDAN NEWS ALERT: Reuters - Sudan gives Israel initial okay for overflights - official

5/2/2020: Reuters - Sudan gives Israel initial okay for overflights - official

Reuters reports that Sudan has agreed to allow flights heading to Israel to cross its airspace, in what Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) spokesman Brigadier Amer al-Hassan labelled an “exchange of interests” between the countries.

Al-Hassan confirmed that Sudan has not announced full normalisation with Israel, but described al-Burhan’s meeting with Netanyahu in Uganda as being in “the highest interests of national security and of Sudan.”

Netanyahu had previously said opening Sudanese airspace to Israeli civilian planes would cut hours off flights to South America, Israel’s fourth-most important travel destination.

SUDAN NEWS ALERT: AP - Sudan official: Talks with Israel about international status

5/2/2020: AP - Sudan official: Talks with Israel about international status, by Samy Magdy

AP report that the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) said the motive in seeking to normalise relations with Israel is to held ends Sudan’s status as an international pariah state. 

SAF spokesman Brig. Amer Mohammed al-Hassan said the goal of the talks between Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and General Abdelfattah al-Burhan was to help secure Sudan’s removal from the US list of state sponsors of terrorism. Burhan was quoted by al-Hassan as telling national newspaper editors that Sudan is under economic pressure and the country needs “bold decisions that shift Sudan’s domestic and foreign policy.”

Cameron Hudson, a senior fellow with the Atlantic Council think-tank said the meeting suggests that al-Burhan and the military “are committed to the survivability of the government…they are willing to put their reputation on the line for this meeting.”