Day: April 17, 2022

JUBA— At least eight people have reportedly been killed in revenge-related clashes between communities of Eastern Equatoria State and the Greater Pibor Administrative Area.

The fighting is said to have ensued when some South Sudan People Defense Forces (SSPDF) soldiers set up an illegal checkpoint in Kapoeta East County’s Kasengor Payam and shot at a passenger vehicle killing at least two people last Friday (April 8).

As a result, armed youth from Pibor attacked villages in Kuron Peace Village which led to the death of six more people on Tuesday (April 12).

Three young girls were also reportedly abducted during the revenge raid.

The Commissioner of Jebel Boma County in Greater Pibor confirmed the incident to Radio Tamazuj.

Longony Alson Luagin claimed the incident was perpetrated by a group of soldiers who had deserted their camp in the area. He said the suspects have been apprehended and are now in police custody.

Alson assured that the two neighboring governments are working to restore calm in the area.

For his part, Kapoeta East County Commissioner Abdalla Lokeno fears that the continuous attacks will hamper the relationship between the two neighboring communities.

In February this year, the governors of Eastern Equatoria State, Louis Lobong Lojore, and the Greater Pibor Administrative Area, Lokoli Amee, embarked on a new peace mission between the two areas.

The move aimed at lobbying for a renewed relationship between the Toposa and the Murle ethnic groups that had been feuding over cattle raids less than two months ago is yet to yield fruits.

In September 2021, the leaders of the Greater Pibor Administrative Area held a three-day retreat to address issues of political differences and how to counter cattle raids, age-set youth violence, and child abduction.

But till today, repeated attacks, cattle raiding and child abduction continue being reported in the areas.

Source: NAM NEWS NETWORK

WASHINGTON— President Samia Suluhu Hassan and US Vice President Kamala Harris met on Friday at the White House in Washington DC, with the two leaders pledging strong ties between the two nations.

But, perhaps, high on the agenda was the fact that the President’s tour which is her second to the United States has generated almost $1 billion dollars in investments from various companies in the US.

Speaking at a briefing US Vice President Kamala Harris said their talks mainly centered on Tanzania’s economic growth.

“We welcome, of course, the attention you are giving to that and the focus of this trip including the focus on investment opportunities in relation to the economy in the area of tourism.

She said that President Samia’s trip to the US has generated almost a billion dollars in new investment from companies in the United States.

The investments, she said, will contribute to major economic growth to Tanzania, but in a way also contribute to the economic growth and jobs in the United States as well.

She concluded: that our administration is deeply committed to strengthening the ties with Tanzania and African countries in general. This is an area of intentional focus.

President Samia on the other hand congratulated the US Vice President for becoming the first woman to hold that office just as the case has been with her.

“This is the first time we are meeting since assumption of office, I would like to congratulate President Joe Biden and yourself Madam Kamala, and the Democratic Party for the victory during the general election held in 2020. We in Tanzania closely followed that election because for the first time there was a woman contesting for the vice presidency, so we were very inspired,” she said

The visit to the White House in Washington DC comes exactly 60 years since Tanzania’s founding Father Julius Nyerere visited President John F Kennedy in 1962.

“The United States and Tanzania have enjoyed relations for the last 60 years, my government would like to see the relations grow further and strengthened to greater heights. I would like to express my government’s appreciation to the US government for the invaluable development assistance and great work the USAID has been doing in Tanzania over the years, particularly on the social and economic development,” she said.

On the Covid-19 Pandemic, she said Tanzania is indeed grateful to the US support and its donations of nearly five million doses Covid vaccines through the covax facility.

On human rights, rule of law and democracy she said: Tanzania has made commendable strides in these areas as we have mentioned and we are committed to taking deliberate measures to ensure inclusion, coercion, unity and respect to all Tanzanians.

Regarding trade she said she was excited about the prospect of promoting further trade and investment for mutual benefit of the two countries.

“In recognition of that we need to create an ease of doing business, my government in collaboration with the private sector has put in place better conditions and favourable environment for the private sector to thrive. So, my only request here to the US government is to encourage more the private sector from the US to work with us in Tanzania,” said President Samia.

She also touched on the upcoming premiere of the Royal Tour documentary which showcases Tanzania’s tourist attractions and investment potentials saying it was one of the reasons why she was in the US

“The selection of the United States wasn’t by accident, we did it intentionally knowing that the lovers and shakers of entertainment and leisure reside here, therefore creating excellent platform for the visibility of the programme across the globe. Indeed, it is my hope that launch of this documentary will inspire so many people to visit our wonderful country in a not so distant future,” she said.

Source: NAM NEWS NETWORK

KHARTOUM, April 17 (NNN-Xinhua) — The Revolutionary Front alliance, which brings together several armed groups in Sudan, welcomed Chairman of Sudan’s Transitional Sovereign Council Abdel Fattah Al-Burhan’s decision to create a suitable atmosphere for dialogue.

Al-Burhan announced in a speech in Khartoum on Friday that he would take measures to create a suitable atmosphere for dialogue, including the release of all detainees and considering the lift of the state of emergency that has been in place since Oct 25, 2021.

“The implementation of these requirements constitutes a goodwill and serious gesture to start a dialogue that will lead to a comprehensive political settlement,” Osama Saeed, spokesman of the Revolutionary Front alliance, said in a statement on Saturday.

The alliance urged civilians to refrain from escalating the conflict and accept a political settlement through dialogue.

Al-Hadi Idriss, a member of Sudan’s Transitional Sovereign Council, called Al-Burhan’s remarks “a positive step that opens the way for comprehensive dialogue among all Sudanese and revolutionary forces.”

With a consensus of all the forces of the revolution, a solution to the Sudanese crisis would soon be reached and a democratic transformation would be achieved, he said.

Abdul-Rahim A-Sunni, a Sudanese political analyst, believes that the country’s political crisis could be resolved through serious dialogue.

“Fulfilment of Al-Burhan’s promises to release the detainees and lift the state of emergency would definitely create a suitable environment for dialogue,” Al-Sunni told Xinhua on Saturday.

He stressed the need for the opposition, especially the forces leading the protests on the street, to stop escalating the conflict and resort to dialogue.

“Due to the crisis, there is an economic, political and security deterioration that has been going on for nearly six months, it is time to search for solutions to get the country out of this crisis,” he said.

The major opposition groups, including the resistance committees, the Sudanese Professionals Association and the Forces of Freedom and Change alliance have yet to respond to Al-Burhan’s remarks.

Sudan has been suffering a political crisis after Al-Burhan declared a state of emergency on Oct. 25, 2021 and dissolved the Sovereign Council and the government.

Since then, the Sudanese capital of Khartoum and other cities have been witnessing continued protests demanding a return to civilian rule.

Source: NAM NEWS NETWORK

LONDON— The British Royal Navy is taking over operational command from Border Force in the English Channel. The service will be responsible for intercepting boats carrying migrants. The decision follows the understanding with Rwanda to have migrants arriving in boats to UK, sent to the African country.

The Prime Minister said the new offshore asylum approach is intended to end the “barbaric trade in human misery conducted by the people smugglers in the Channel” and said crossings could reach 1,000 a day in a few weeks.

“These vile people smugglers are abusing the vulnerable and turning the Channel into a watery graveyard,” Boris Johnson said.

“To identify, intercept and investigate these boats, from today the Royal Navy will take over operational command from Border Force in the Channel, taking primacy for our operational response at sea in line with many of our international partners with the aim that no boat makes it to the UK undetected.”

Johnson added that giving the Royal Navy operational command in the English Channel will send a clear message to criminal gangs.

“This will be supported by £50m of new funding for new boats, aerial surveillance and military personnel,” the Prime Minister added.

“In addition to the existing task force of patrol vessels, helicopters, search and rescue aircraft, drones and remotely piloted aircraft, this will send a clear message to those piloting the boats: if you risk other people’s lives in the Channel, you risk spending your own life in prison.

”People who do make it to the UK will be taken not to hotels at vast public expense, rather they will be housed in accommodation centers like those in Greece with the first of these to open shortly.“

The decision to task the military with policing the Channel has received some criticism in the past. In January, the Defense Select Committee was told there was ”no spare capacity“ to deploy naval vessels to police the English Channel, while the same month the committee’s chair, Tobias Ellwood, told Forces News his belief that: ”That’s not what our Navy is for.“

A Defense Select Committee report in March also called for a ”clear end point” to the British military’s role in tackling the number of migrant crossings in the Channel.

Source: NAM NEWS NETWORK

RIYADH— OPEC oil production increased by just 57,000 barrels per day (bpd) in March from February, as African members’ struggles to pump more crude partially offset increases at the core OPEC members of the Middle East.

All 13 OPEC members—including Libya, Iran, and Venezuela which are exempted from the OPEC+ deal—pumped 28.56 million bpd in March, up by just 57,000 bpd from February, according to OPEC’s Monthly Oil Market Report, (MOMR) published this week.

Crude oil output increased mainly in the three Arab Gulf producers—Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, and the UAE, while production in Libya, Nigeria, and Congo declined.

Saudi Arabia raised its production by 54,000 bpd to 10.262 million bpd in March, according to OPEC’s secondary sources. That compares with 10,331 million bpd quota for Saudi Arabia for March per the OPEC+ deal. The Saudis self-reported March crude oil production of 10.300 million bpd, OPEC said in the report.

UAE raised its production by 23,000 bpd to 2.983 million bpd, per OPEC’s secondary sources, compared to a quota of 2.976 million bpd. Kuwait’s production rose by 25,000 bpd to 2.639 million bpd, in line with its quota under the OPEC+ deal.

While the Arab Gulf producers more or less complied with their quotas, African producers such as Nigeria, Congo, and Angola saw their production drop, with Nigeria’s output down by 24,000 bpd to 1.354 million bpd. That’s a massive underachievement compared to Nigeria’s quota of 1.718 million bpd.

In terms of expected supply from non-OPEC producers this year, OPEC revised down its supply growth estimate by 300,000 bpd to growth of 2.7 million bpd, mostly due to a downward revision of Russia’s liquids production—down by 530,000 bpd. OPEC, however, raised its estimate for U.S. crude oil production growth by 260,000 bpd.

“While most US oil companies continue to focus on paying off debts and returning capital to shareholders, increasing drilling and completion trends could translate into higher production levels in the coming months,” the cartel said. “Therefore, the US liquids supply growth forecast for 2022 is revised up by 0.26 mb/d to 1.29 mb/d.”

Source: NAM NEWS NETWORK

A senior official in West Darfur complained on Saturday that the federal authorities in Khartoum have ignored demands of the state government to provide needed military reinforcements enabling them to quell chronic tribal violence in the state.

West Darfur State has witnessed tribal conflicts that have claimed the lives of large numbers of people and displaced thousands now residing in shelters inside the city of El Geneina or taking refuge in refugee camps in neighbouring Chad.

A state official told the Sudan Tribune that the state government had made many demands to the Sovereign Council and the prime minister before the October 25 coup, to provide military equipment, including warplanes.

Also, the state government requested to replace the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) deployed in West Darfur with forces from outside Darfur in order to avoid colliding with this or that tribal component.

“It seems that there are people in the centre who are working hard to prevent the state government to get the needed military capabilities,” added the official who was speaking under the cover of anonymity.

Also, he confirmed that they have security reports about security forces deployed in the area who side with their tribes in the intercommunal clashes.

The Jebel Moon area, which is close to the Chadian border but also other areas in West Darfur witness frequent clashes between Arab nomad tribes and Massalit farmers. The Arab gunmen used advanced weapons that exceed the military equipment available to government forces there.

The Masalit accused, on several occasions, the Rapid Support Forces, made up of the Arab tribesmen in the region, of favouring and supporting the Arab tribes. They are also accused of turning a blind eye to the attacks carried out by their clan members.

For their part, the Arab groups point an accusing finger at the former Massalit rebels who regained their area after the end of the war with their weapons saying they aggress and attack them for no reason seeking revenge.

Minnawi orders

According to the state official, Darfur Governor Minni Minnawi who is currently visiting West Darfur directed to replace the security forces deployed in the area.

“But Minnawi’s directives will not be implemented because that is not within his competence, as he so far does not have known powers,” he added.

Former Prime Minister Abdallah Hamdok appointed Minnawi as the governor of the Darfur region on May 2, 2021, in line with the Juba Peace Agreement.

However, the transitional government did not adopt a law defining the powers and competencies of the region’s governor.

“Such directives should be issued by the Sovereign Council in accordance with the state of emergency declared on October 25,” he added referring to the military coup.

The farmers in the area say that these regular attacks against them aim to expel them from their lands and to prospect for gold and precious metals in the Jebel Moon area.

The Sudan Tribune failed to reach the state governor after several attempts to speak with him.

The official spoke about recent inter-communal attacks in Adikonk area north of Geneina close to the Chadian border.

He pointed out that its residents fled to refugees camps in eastern Chad, and the assailants burned large parts of the area and looted the residents’ properties.

Mohamed Deby the head of the Transitional Military Council in Chad last February expressed fears that the tribal violence in West Darfur spills over into the Chadian side of the borders.

The statements prompted the head of the Sovereign Council to visit N’Djamena at the end of March to discuss the matter and agree with Deby to strengthen the joint patrols in the region.

Source: Sudan Tribune