Author: Web Desk

Sudan’s Transitional Sovereign Council has acknowledged the resumption in oil flow to Port Sudan, days after protests in eastern Sudan disrupted production in its northern oil fields.

The move, SUNA reported, followed a meeting between the government delegation led by Lt. Gen, Shamseddeen Kabbashi, the Red Sea Security Committee and the Higher Council for Beja chieftains headed by Mohammed Al-Amin Terk.

The meeting agreed on safe passage of oil from South Sudan to Sudan through Bashair.

During the meeting, government delegation presented a number of proposals to solve the East Sudan issue, including reopening ports and national roads as well as holding of a comprehensive conference for the people of Eastern Sudan.

Lt. Gen Kabbashi, who chaired the meeting, announced the security of the civil movement of the Supreme Council of Beja Higher Council until a final agreement is reached on the pending issues.

He also received, at the conclusion of the meeting, a memorandum containing demands of the people of eastern Sudan which the head of the Supreme Council of Beja chiefdoms handed to him.

On Sunday, Kabashi and the accompanying government delegation also witnessed the end of disruption of oil flow at the Bashayer terminal and the resumption of South Sudan’s oil exports.

The head of the government delegation also addressed the Beja youth who were closing the Bashayer port praising the peaceful behaviour during the protests and their cooperation with the state government by allowing the entry of basic commodities through ports and airports.

Last week, a tribal group rejecting the Juba Peace Agreement in eastern Sudan closed the roads leading to the maritime ports on the Red Sea. On Sunday the Hadandaw group closed the Bashayer crude oil export terminal, located 25 km south of Port Sudan.

Source: Sudan Tribune

South Sudan government should support efforts by the Joint Defence Board (JDB) to expedite demilitarisation procesa in Tambura County of Western Equatoria State, a civil society body said.

In a statement issued on Monday, Community Empowerment for Progress Organisation (CEPO) expressed concerns over disputes and violence fuelled by social media messages from a section of the country’s citizens.

“This [social media posts] is bad and worrying. The social media trend on Tambura disputes is fuelling and building up attitudes for violence and creating fear on the population,” said CEPO’s Executive Director, Edmund Yakani.

He appealed to the national government to mitigate insecurity in Tambura by supporting the JDB.

“The national government needs to confirm to the nation if the violence in Tambura is leading to formation of armed youth groups from the conflict communities,” stressed Yakani.

According to Yakani, the humanitarian situation of internally displaced persons in Tambura needs to be urgently addressed. He appealed to the political elites to take responsibility to make peace prevail.

“This trend of creating armed group for youth of the conflicting parties is unaccepted and the national government should intervene,” he said.

In the last few months, Tambura County has witnessed violent clashes involving elements of the armed opposition (SPLA-IO) and forces loyal to Gen. James Nando who defected from the SPLA-IO to South Sudan army (SSPDF) last year.

The conflict in Tambura, local officials say, has displaced more than 80,000 people from their homes and remain in dire need of humanitarian assistance.

Source: Sudan Tribune

The prosecutor at the International Criminal Court in The Hague on Monday asked the tribunal for permission to resume a war crimes investigation into the actions of the Taliban and Islamic State-Khorasan in Afghanistan.

The ICC had spent 15 years investigating alleged war crimes in war-torn Afghanistan, but the probe was put on hold a year ago by the U.S.-backed Afghan government, which said it was conducting its own investigation before it fell to the Taliban last month.

The ICC is a court of last resort for war crimes investigations, when individual member countries are unable or unwilling to conduct their own probes. New ICC prosecutor Karim Khan said that since the internationally recognized Kabul government has fallen, there is a “significant change of circumstances.”

“After reviewing matters carefully, I have reached the conclusion that, at this time, there is no longer the prospect of genuine and effective domestic investigations … within Afghanistan,” Khan said.

The ICC judges will now consider Khan’s request. Investigators had been examining alleged crimes by all sides in the conflict, including U.S. forces, Afghan government troops and Taliban fighters.

Khan said he wants to focus his investigation on actions of the Taliban and Islamic State-Khorasan, the offshoot of the Islamic State terrorist group operating in Afghanistan, and to “deprioritize” alleged war crimes by U.S. forces.

The earlier inclusion of alleged war crimes by U.S. forces had angered the administration of former U.S. President Donald Trump, which imposed sanctions on Khan’s predecessor, Fatou Bensouda, over the issue. The U.S. lifted the sanctions on Bensouda earlier this year under the administration of President Joe Biden.

The State Department on Monday acknowledged the prosecutor’s announcement.

“We were deeply concerned about the current human rights situation in Afghanistan, and that also includes allegations of atrocities, and certainly welcomed efforts to ensure accountability,” State Department deputy spokesperson Jalina Porter told reporters Monday.

“We’re pleased to see that the ICC prioritize its resources to focus on the gravest of allegations and atrocity crimes,” she added.

Khan said his new focus of an investigation was necessary because of the “gravity, scale and continuing nature of alleged crimes by the Taliban and the Islamic State” and the need to “construct credible cases capable of being proved beyond reasonable doubt in the courtroom.”

The ICC prosecutor said one focus of a new investigation would be the deadly August 26 attack on Kabul airport, an incident claimed by IS-K, in which 13 U.S. service members and more than 100 Afghan civilians were killed.

Source: Voice Of America

Representatives of the civilian component announced their readiness to defend the democratic transition and confront the military leaders, while Abdel Fattah al-Burhan reiterated they have no intention to seize power.

On Sunday, hundreds of activists flocked to the headquarters of the Empowerment Removal Committee to protect it, after the withdrawal of the security forces tasked with the protection of the committee’s premises and 22 facilities confiscated from the leaders of the ousted regime. Also, the military withdrew the guards of the Spokesman of the Sovereignty Council and the head of the removal committee, Mohamed al-Faki.

This escalation has been perceived as part of a plan to seize power by the army after the refusal of the military component to protect strategic economic facilities in eastern Sudan.

In his speech to the activists at the crowded headquarters of the committee which was the former Sudanese parliament, al-Faki thanked them for responding quickly to their call to protect the committee, stressing that this shows the strength of the revolutionary tide in the country.

“This Holy Place, where Sudan’s independence was declared, will be a centre for confrontation operations if they want it,” he said to the galvanised supporters.

He pointed out that the meeting room will be open throughout the day for the resistance committees, political forces and unions to prepare, coordinate and daily political discussion, stressing that they are “ready for any adventure with uncalculated consequences, and for anyone who thinks of altering the Constitutional Document.”

He went further to say he was not afraid after the withdrawal of his bodyguards pointing that the masses protect him.

Al-Faki’s speech was repeatedly interrupted by the crowd chanting slogans such as “The army is the army of Sudan, the army is not the army of al-Burhan. All the streets would be blocked in a moment when they receive orders. Oh you who is ready to defend the country, prepare your coffin.”

The remarks by the different orators and slogans chanted by the crowd recalled the popular mobilization outside the army headquarters when the army seized power and refused to hand it to the revolutionary forces in April 2019.

Also, the Forces for Freedom and Changes (FFC) held a meeting at the headquarters of the Empowerment Removal Committee to discuss the recent developments and determine the way forward.

In their remakes at the opening session attended by the media, the FFC leaders reaffirmed their support to the democratic transition and called to adhere to the Constitutional Document, preserving the country’s security, and implementing the security reforms.

They expressed their support for the Empowerment Removal Committee and hope that they would not need to stage a new uprising after the December revolution.

Al-Buran committed to democratic transition

Abdel Fattah al-Burhan Chairman of the Transitional Sovereign Council Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces Sunday renewed his keenness on the country’s unity and the consensus of political forces, stressing that this unity is the only way to safeguard the country.

Speaking before the army senior officers, al-Burhan stressed that the armed forces are keen to complete the transitional process leading to building a state of freedom, peace and justice.

He emphasized that the army should stay far from political polarization.

“what is rumoured about the intention of the armed forces to carry out a coup is pure fabrication,” he further said.

He repeated that the armed forces were the ones who thwarted the recent coup attempt.

Hamdok calls for patriotism

The Prime Minister who leads the transitional government sought to contain the crisis and held a lengthy meeting with the Chairman of the Sovereign Council al-Burhan, but the outcome of the meetings was not disclosed.

After the meeting, he stated that the current conflict is not between military and civilians, but between those who believe in the democratic civil transformation, and who seek to obstruct it.

He added that the unity of the revolutionary forces is the guarantee to immunize the transition from all the threats it faces.

“I call on all parties to strictly adhere to the Constitutional Document, to stay away from unilateral positions, to bear their full responsibility, and to be armed with a high patriotic spirit that advances the interests of our country and our people over everything else,” he added.

Source: Sudan Tribune

The Africa Investment Summit on Health has been hailed as the long-awaited continental effort to galvanize cohesive actions that will help scale and achieve capacity in the African production of prescription drugs and health supplies.

The virtual summit organized by the Economic Commission for Africa (ECA), the African Business Coalition for Health (ABCHealth) and the National Institutes for Health (NIH) hosted business leaders as well as Rwanda minister of health, Dr. Daniel Ngamije; African Union Commission (AUC) deputy chairperson, Dr. Monique Nsanzabaganwa; CEO of AUDA-NEPAD, Dr. Ibrahim Mayaki; Africa CDC, Dr. John Nkengasong; The Africa Medicine Agency (AMA) Special Envoy, Dr. Michel Sidibe; Aliko Dangote Foundation CEO, Ms Zouera Youssoufou; and Honourable Matthew Hancock, Member of Parliament of the UK amongst many other distinguished speakers.

ABCHealth was initiated in 2019 as a collaboration between philanthropists, business champions and development institutions. Chairman of the board and founder of Coronation Capital Mr. Aigboje Aig-Imoukhuede, expressed his optimism:

“It is indeed satisfying to see our partnership with the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (ECA) mature to this level of impact. The pandemic has compelled us to act with even greater urgency and our priority is to attract financing for Africa’s health sector. Together with support from the international community, African governments and African business must dispel the notion that we cannot manufacture the medicines and equipment for the continent whose population carries the highest disease burden. We are also proud to announce the West Africa AfCFTA-Anchored Pharma Initiative was launched this week. This initiative is designed to foster local production of drugs and medical equipment in West Africa and ultimately the rest of the continent, drawing on the lessons of the parent AfCFTA-anchored Pharmaceutical Initiative.”

Dr. Vera Songwe, United Nations Under-Secretary-General & Executive Secretary of the Economic Commission for Africa, revealed the enormous opportunities in Africa’s healthcare market:

“Since the launch of the Africa Continental Free Trade Agreement, Africa’s public and private sector are grasping the opportunities for economic prosperity. Imports of medicines and medical equipment that rose from USD 4.2 billion in 1998 to USD 20 billion in 2018 are an example of the enormous business opportunities in Africa’s healthcare market … At the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, Africa demonstrated its ability to pool procurement, create instruments, institutions and apply the power of innovative financing to solve our biggest challenge – getting vaccines. By working together, we can do a lot more to improve Africa’s health outcomes.”

Dr. Roger Glass, Director, Fogarty International Center & Associate Director, Global Health, NIH; said; “With a stronger Africa R&D, the continent’s health sector can be robust. We believe that in the next few decades, economic advances in Africa will be driven by science and technology and improvements in health.”

Zouera Youssofou, Managing Director/CEO of the Aliko Dangote Foundation & Board Director for ABCHealth; “This is a call to action – Africa has what it needs to improve its health outcomes – it has political will, it has pioneers in the manufacturing sector, it has funders, it has capacity. We know what to do, we know what it takes, we have what we need – let us just do it.”

The summit, moderated by Dr. Olusoji Adeyi, President Resilient Health Systems, highlighted key findings from the second edition of the Health and Economic Growth in Africa Report, ‘Doing Health Differently in Africa: Now and Beyond COVID-19,’ Africa Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA) and the Africa Medicines Agency (AMA).

Source: UN Economic Commission for Africa