Day: June 29, 2022

The Chairperson of the African Union Commission. Moussa Faki called on Sudan and Ethiopia to refrain from military escalation and to seek a negotiated dispute for the border conflict between the two countries.

Sudanese army on Tuesday attacked Ethiopian troops based in Barkhat area and destroyed their settlement after the killing of seven of its soldiers and the display of their bodies.

Faki on Wednesday released a statement saying he was following with “deep concern” the military escalations between Sudan and Ethiopia.

“The Chairperson appeals for complete refrain from any military action whatever its origin and calls for dialogue between the two brotherly countries to solve any dispute,” further he said.

He further called on the two sides to hold negotiations under “the auspices of the AU Border Program”.

Sudan had already rejected any talks with Ethiopia on the Fashaga area. Khartoum says there are two border demarcation agreements sealed in 1902 and 1975.

Faki’s proposal, which is in line with the Ethiopian demand to engage in new discussions, has very little chance of being accepted by the Sudanese government.

Ethiopia said that the abduction of the Sudanese soldiers and their murder were done by a local militia.

Source: Sudan Tribune

The African Union called for restraint Wednesday after clashes between Ethiopia and Sudan in a disputed border area. The tensions broke out after Sudan accused Ethiopia of executing seven of its troops, which Ethiopia blamed on a local militia.

The statement appealed for “complete refrain from any military action, whatever its origins,” and called for dialogue between Sudan and Ethiopia to resolve any dispute.

Sudan on Tuesday captured Jabal Kala al-Laban, an area on the border, after using heavy artillery a Sudanese military source told Reuters.

Shawgi Abdulazim, a Sudanese political analyst, said a broader conflict is unlikely because both countries are politically and economically fragile and a conflict could have disastrous effects.

He said if war happens, it will affect the humanitarian situation in both countries, resulting in an influx of refugees and displaced people. It would also further impact the situation in Djibouti, Somalia, and South Sudan amid an expected hunger crisis in the region.

Sudanese journalist Abdelmoniem Abuedries doubts the conflict will escalate.

“I don’t think this will lead to broader conflict, it will continue to be small clashes here and there,” he said. “Always these small clashes are happening at the beginning of the rainy season in this area, because the farmers start cultivating their farms.”

The clashes have taken place around the al-Fashaqa region, where land disputes between Sudanese and Ethiopian farmers have simmered for decades.

Source: Voice of America

Communities in Gogrial West County of South Sudan’s Warrap State can now access clean drinking water, after years.

The initiative is part of the support from Community Initiative for Development Agency (CIDA), a non-governmental organisations founded in 2015.

CIDA’s Executive Director, Gabriel Pap Nyok said the project, targeting returnees and host communities is supported by the United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) through the Quick Impact Projects (QIPs) funding.

“We have just concluded drilling and installing three boreholes in Rialdit, Madhol and Ngon-Ngon villages. The boreholes have reduced the spread of water borne diseases and burden associated with medical costs to host communities and internally displaced persons in Kuac North and South communities”, he explained.

According the United Nations Children Fund (UNICEF), at least 2.8 million children were out of school due to poverty, inequalities, cultural beliefs and nomadic lifestyles before the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic.

But with one of the highest out-of-school ratios in the world, South Sudan cannot afford to have more children missing out on education and no effort should be spared to ensure students return to finish their education.

John Kuac Ngor, a resident of Rialdit village in Gogrial West, said with access to clean water from the new borehole, schools pupils and teachers can now focus on their education and have improved health and safety.

“I feel very relieved that the school children can walk over there to get water and not have to go all the way to the old water point,” noted Ngor.

He added, “This drilled borehole means the children can now wash hands after using toilets and drink water whenever thirsty. It also means that they can spend more time in the classrooms and focus on their education”.

CIDA, with support from UNMISS, is also creating a conducive learning environment to enable community members return their children to school.

“We are constructing a block of two classrooms, an office and a VIP-four stance pit latrine for Rialdit and its neighboring villages,” explains Pap.

He further said the organization is constructing a perimeter wall fence protected with razor wire and slide door to support the operations and infrastructure of the law and human rights institutions in Tonj North County.

Constant conflicts have led to the current water crisis in South Sudan. During the civil war of December 2013, water systems were deserted and demolished.

Over 50% of the population in South Sudan reportedly lack access to clean water.

Source: Sudan Tribune

Community leaders of the greater Tonj in the South Sudan’s State of Warrap have appealed for peaceful measures as a way to defuse tension and halt violence against armed civilians in Tonj north county where armed confrontation had claimed several lives and destroyed properties.

Several houses were also set ablaze, resulting in the displacement of the local population after an armed youth group overrun a military camp in the area on Saturday and Sunday.

Top military officers, including the chief of the military intelligence and the chief of the operations of the government forces, were killed when armed civilians overrun the military camp in which cattle raided from a neigbouring community were kept after they were recovered.

A statement from a newly elected Tonj community leadership led by the former governor of Warrap state, Lewis Anei Kuendit, expressed profound sorrow and deep regret for what he described as an unfortunate fight pitting a unit of the government forces against armed civil youths of Awan-Parek in Rualbet payam area of Tonj North County in Warrap State.

“I take this opportunity on behalf of the people of Tonj in Juba, to convey my deep sorrow and condolence to all the families bereaved on both sides as a result of that armed confrontation”, partly reads the statement issued to the public on June 27, 2022.

The statement condemned all those who triggered such a disastrous situation and appealed for the claim, requesting restraint and de-escalation of the situation on both sides.

“I appeal for dialogue through civil engagement as the Awan-Parek civil Community is supposed to be given the opportunity to address State government demands in their area.

Awan-Parek local chiefs should be released from detention in Kuajok to return to Awan in order to participate in retrieving the alleged 39 looted cows of Arop-Majiec, surrendering the Military equipment the civilians may have taken during the reported battle. The wanted criminals must be identified and handed over to the police authorities”, explained Kuendit.

The new community leader also appealed to President Salva Kiir to not allow the community to be destroyed by the force of the government in revenge for the forces killed when the military camp was overrun by armed civilians protesting the recovery of the stolen cattle.

“I appeal to our President of the Republic, SSPDF c-in-c not to kindly allow the Community of Awan-Parek to be destroyed by the government forces as the ongoing Military moves seem to suggest on the ground. I also appeal to our President to create a conducive political atmosphere for Awan, Tonj, and Warrap Community leaders in towns to participate in solving this critical situation in Awan-Parek, Tonj North, and the rest of Tonj”, requested Kuendit.

He rejected voices criticizing the conduct of the election of Tonj Community Leader in Juba a day after the disaster, saying preparations were way ahead and the necessity for the people of Tonj to have a legitimate mouthpiece to speak and stand for their affairs

“As for those criticizing why the election of Tonj Community Leader in Juba was conducted a day after the disaster, it was necessary for the people of Tonj to have a legitimate mouthpiece to speak and stand for their affairs. Moreover, the meeting of the General Assembly was earlier scheduled for that day and there was no way to push the General Assembly Meeting to another day as getting spacious Halls accommodating a General Assembly are not easily found nowadays. Critics must know that Tonj Community Leader seriously expressed sorrows for what happened in Rualbet right at the opening”, concluded the statement.

Conflict and insecurity in South Sudan are usually given different levels of interpretation. Some are associated with civil war and would indicate that a substantial collapse in state authority is underway. Yet the government in Juba endures, and the political bargain holding together the various military, security, and rebel factions since 2018 has mostly held during this surge in violence

Academics and analysts are keen to underscore that the violent conflicts around the Tonj area are complicated, with violence among irregular militias giving way to more organized violence conducted by elites at the top of the pyramid in Juba. Clashes within Tonj North operate at two levels, with the interest of elites often based in Juba permeating through these levels.

In the first of these levels, the Kuachthii and Akop sections of the Rek Dinka have engaged in raids and attacks against one another. In the second level, existing feuds within the Kuachthii specifically between the Ajak-Leer and Noi sub-sections and Akop particularly Apuk Padoc and Awan-Parek sub-sections, have entrenched violence in parts of the county.

These conflicts have the outward appearance of being driven by disputes over the use of grazing land, administrative boundaries, and the acquisition of cattle, and invariably spark revenge attacks by the community targeted over these matters.

These conflicts are mirrored in eastern parts of Tonj South County, involving the Muok, Thony, and Apuk Jurwiir sections. Violence has also clustered in and around Tonj town, while occasional reports of cross-border raids from Tonj South into Tonj North emerge.

Source: Sudan Tribune

U.S. and EU diplomats urged to refrain from violence against the pro-democracy protests planned on Thursday as Congressmen renewed calls for targeted sanctions on the coup leaders.

Pro-democracy forces plan to hold a protest on Thursday to celebrate the 3rd anniversary of the popular rallies that forced the military leaders to hand over power to civilians in August 2019, before a coup that toppled the transitional government.

The Resistance Committees organise neighbourhood protests reminding Sudanese to take to the street on June 30, while the security services arrested activists in a bid to abort the successful demonstration.

The U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for Africa Molly Phee spoke on Wednesday with General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and urged not to use violence to disperse the protests supporting the restoration of a civilian government.

Phee said that she also spoke with the leaders of the Forces for Freedom and Change (FFC) coalition and Sudanese Revolutionary Forces.

“Spoilers must not be allowed to use June 30 protests to undermine progress on restoring the transition,” she added.

For their part, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain, Sweden ambassadors and the EU Delegation in Khartoum released a statement calling upon the Sudanese authorities to “guarantee freedom of expression”.

“Moreover, it is essential for protests to remain peaceful and protected by security forces,” added the European diplomats.

General al-Burhan repeated on Wednesday that power handover to civilians requires a national agreement or elections.

“Power transfer cannot be implemented through chaos, sabotage, or the provocation of others,” he said in remarks before to the Sudanese army special forces.

Also, the authorities plan to close bridges in the three cities of the capital Khartoum to prevent protests from Omdurman and Bahri from reaching the presidential place the headquarters of the military-led Sovereign Council.

Also, a disruption to mobile internet access is expected in Khartoum to prevent coordination between the protesters.

Congress urges targeted sanctions

Four Congressmen in Washington issued a joint statement calling on the Sudanese coup leaders to cede power to civilian government and respect the rights of freedom of expression and peaceful protest.

U.S. Senators Bob Menendez, Jim Risch, Chairman and Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, and Representatives Gregory Meeks and Michael McCaul, Chairman and Ranking Member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee condemned the killing of over 200 civilians in Khartoum and Darfur as result of excessive use of violence against protesters and tribal clashes.

“We urge Sudanese security forces to refrain from using violence to suppress peaceful protests and to respect the rights of the Sudanese people to advocate for change without fear of reprisal,” reads the joint statement.

The congressmen urged the Sudanese military to return to their barracks and called the Biden administration and the international community to take punitive measures against the military leaders.

“We also urge the United States and other members of the international community to curb impunity by imposing individual, targeted sanctions on security force leaders responsible for gross violations of human rights or significant public corruption.”

On Thursday, the security forces killed a protester in Bahri when they fired live ammunition to disperse the neighbourhood protest calling to take part in the national protests of June 30.

Source: Sudan Tribune