SUDAN NEWS ALERT: Reuters – Sudan faces famine risk in 14 areas, global hunger monitor says

27/6/2024: Reuters – Sudan faces famine risk in 14 areas, global hunger monitor says 

There is a realistic chance of famine in 14 areas across Sudan, warn the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC).

The areas include parts of the capital Khartoum, the regions of Darfur and Kordofan and Al-Jazira state.

The IPC is a collaboration that includes U.N. agencies, national governments and aid groups, and produces internationally recognised assessments of food crises. Its most extreme warning is Phase 5, which has two levels, catastrophe and then famine.

Famine can be declared if at least 20% of the population in an area are suffering extreme food shortages, with at least 30% of children acutely malnourished and two people out of every 10,000 dying daily from starvation or malnutrition and disease. 

Since the IPC warning system was created 20 years ago, famines have only been declared twice - in parts of Somalia in 2011 and in parts of South Sudan in 2017.

SUDAN NEWS ALERT: New York Times - At Least 750,000 on Brink of Starvation and Death in Sudan, Experts Warn

27/6/2024: New York Times - At Least 750,000 on Brink of Starvation and Death in Sudan, Experts Warn, by Declan Walsh

The New York Times report that at least 14 areas across Sudan are near famine, including some in Khartoum, according to the latest figures from the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC), a group of experts that formally declares famine. 

With over half Sudan’s 48 million people facing chronic hunger, this leaves over 750,000 at risk of death by starvation.

However, the IPC has not formally declared a famine in Sudan, in part because reliable data is hard to obtain. Sudan’s health system is collapsing and aid workers cannot reach the worst-affected areas because of intense fighting and restrictions imposed by the warring parties.

Famine scholar Alex de Waal told The Horn podcast: “We may not see a famine declaration, but there’s no question that the starvation crisis is on a scale without parallel for 40 years or more, and is going to kill hundreds of thousands of Sudanese”.

SUDAN INSIGHT ALERT: Washington Post – Constitutional reform is important in Algeria and Sudan. Here’s why

27/6/19: Washington Post – Constitutional reform is important in Algeria and Sudan. Here’s why, by Zaid Al-Ali

 Zaid Al-Ali, the author of Arab Constitutionalism: The Coming Revolution, calls for Sudanese political and civilian groups to develop a roadmap for constitutional reform, “that would rebuild both normative and popular legitimacy.”

 Al-Ali specifically calls for “complex, multilayered processes,” combining negotiations on principles, elections, dialogue and other elements, allowing elected bodies, experts, civil society groups and others to find a common ground. Al-Ali adds that such processes should be underpinned by pragmatism, to “adapt to evolving circumstances on the ground.”

 Al-Ali argues that constitutional reform is on the cards in Sudan due to international pressure on the military council after the June 3 massacre “forced” the TMC to try re-open negotiations with civil society protest leaders, but warns that “it would be a serious mistake to allow for a constitution’s content to be entirely determined by a single electoral outcome.”

SUDAN NEWS ALERT: AP – Ethiopia, AU float proposal for peace in Sudan

27/6/19: AP – Ethiopia, AU float proposal for peace in Sudan, by Samy Magdy

 AP reports that Sudan’s protest movement, the Declaration of Freedom and Change (DFC) said it received a new, joint proposal from the African Union and Ethiopia for a solution to the crisis in Sudan.

 The DFC said in a brief statement they have a draft of a proposed agreement with the military council, based on a previous initiative from Ethiopia for a power-sharing arrangement.

 The military council initially rejected the Ethiopian plan, asking Ethiopia to present a joint proposal with the African Union, which it said handed the military a separate transition plan.

SUDAN NEWS ALERT: Reuters – Security forces use tear gas to disperse students in Sudan's Khartoum

27/6/19: Reuters – Security forces use tear gas to disperse students in Sudan's Khartoum

 Reuters reports that Sudanese security forces fired tear gas to disperse dozens of students demonstrating against the ruling military council at a financial academy in the heart of Sudan’s capital Khartoum on Thursday, a Reuters witness said.

 Dozens of lawyers also gathered outside the main courthouse complex in Omdurman, Khartoum’s twin city, calling for civilian rule and for people to join mass demonstrations planned for Sunday. They chanted: “Freedom, peace, and justice. Civilian (rule) is the people’s choice.”

SUDAN NEWS ALERT: Globe and Mail - Canadian lobbying firm hired for US$6-million to polish image of Sudan’s military regime

27/6/19: Globe and Mail - Canadian lobbying firm hired for US$6-million to polish image of Sudan’s military regime, by Geoffrey York

 The Globe and Mail reports that Canadian lobbying firm Dickens & Madson signed a $6-million deal to seek government funds and diplomatic recognition for Himedti, US documents show.

 The Sudanese regime is also paying Dickens & Madson to find oil investors, equipment for its security forces, a meeting with US President Trump and improved relations with Russia, Saudi Arabia, the UN, African Union and “possibly other countries and organisations.”

 The contract, signed by Himedti on May 7, said Dickens & Madson will “assist the devising and execution of policies for the beneficial development of [Himedti’s] political aims.”

 The goal is to “assure that [Himedti] attains recognition as the legitimate transitionary leadership of…Sudan and create a supervisory role for [the] council.”

 Dickens & Madson also proposed a Sudanese alliance with one of their former clients, Libyan militia commander Khalifa Haftar, whereby Haftar provides “military help in exchange for funding.”