https://uk.news.yahoo.com/video/call-cut-sudan-aid-over-190002440.html
David Cameron says the death sentence handed down to Meriam Ibrahim is “barbaric” and has called on Sudanese authorities to intervene.
The Prime Minister joined international condemnation of the 27-year-old mother’s plight, saying he is “absolutely appalled” by the case.
And UKIP leader Nigel Farage has now called on the Government to cut aid cash to Sudan, which last year stood at £42m.
Mr Cameron said: “The way she is being treated is barbaric and has no place in today’s world.
“I urge the government of Sudan to overturn the sentence and immediately provide appropriate support and medical care for her and her children.
“The UK will continue to press the government of Sudan to act.”
Meanwhile, Mr Farage has urged the ending of UK financial support for Sudan.
He said: “I suspect this particular case is going to shock people, horrify people so much that there will be a renewed debate about where we are spending billions of our pounds every year.”
Tory MP for Totnes Dr Sarah Wollaston has also said on Twitter that aid should be conditional on “action to reverse the rising tide of barbarity against women”.
But Conservative International Development Secretary Justine Greening argued it would be “totally perverse” to withdraw aid:
She said: “British aid to Sudan only goes on helping the very poorest Sudanese people via the UN and NGOs, and not a penny is given to the Sudanese government.
“Withdrawing support from thousands of Sudanese families, many also with small children, would only compound this terrible situation. That cannot be right.”
Ms Ibrahim was found guilty by a Sudanese court of apostasy in renouncing Islam and of adultery for marrying a Christian, Daniel Wani.
She was sentenced to 100 lashes and death by hanging earlier this month.
Her death sentence has been suspended for two years so she can nurse her daughter Maya, who was born in prison on Wednesday.
There have been claims that Ms Ibrahim may soon be released, but the UK Foreign Office has not been able to confirm the reports.
Ms Ibrahim was forced to give birth to the child while shackled to a prison floor after guards at Omdurman Women’s Prison refused to release her.
Both the UK and US governments have summoned Sudan’s charge d’affaires to discuss the case.
Foreign Office Minister Mark Simmonds told Sky News Britain is doing everything it can to pressure the Sudanese government to lift Ms Ibrahim’s sentence.
He said: “We are putting intense pressure on the Sudanese government to do everything that they can to ensure her release.
“Hopefully the international outrage will push the Sudanese authorities into a situation where they feel they have to release Meriam.”
He said her sentencing was unconstitutional under Sudanese law and in violation of the country’s commitment to treaties that relate to human rights and freedom of religion.
The US State Department has described Ms Ibrahim’s incarceration as “horrific” and continues to press Sudanese officials to intervene.
US embassy officials have been attending Ms Ibrahim’s public hearings and are monitoring the appeals process in Khartoum.
Mr Cameron’s comments follow condemnation from former US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, and British politicians including Ed Miliband and Nick Clegg.
Read More: https://uk.news.yahoo.com/
Sudan ‘to free’ death row woman Meriam Ibrahim
(BBC) Sudanese authorities are to free a woman who was sentenced to death for having abandoned the Islamic faith, a foreign ministry official says. Meriam Ibrahim, who gave birth to a daughter in custody, will be freed in a few days, the official told the BBC. Abdullahi Alzareg, an under-secretary at the foreign ministry, said Sudan guaranteed religious freedom and was committed to protecting the woman. Khartoum has been facing international condemnation over the death sentence. The ruling has revived a debate over apostasy, with liberal and conservative scholars giving different opinions over whether – and how – the act of abandoning the Islamic faith should be punished.
Read More: http://www.bbc.com/
Sudan to free woman on death row for apostasy
(AFP) Authorities in Sudan have agreed to release a woman, sentenced to death for apostasy, after world leaders added their voices to the campaign to free her, the media reported Saturday. Abdullahi Al Zareg, an under secretary at Sudan’s foreign ministry, said Saturday that Sudan guaranteed religious freedom and was committed to protecting the woman while announcing that she will be released within days from the prison, according to BBC. Britain and Canada last week summoned the Sudanese envoys to their countries over Ishag’s case, which they say conflicts with Sudan’s international human rights obligations.
Read More: http://gulfnews.com/
Sudanese Islamist groups denounce results of Egypt’s presidential elections
(Sudan Tribune) Several Sudanese Islamist groups have organized an oratorical festival on Friday to denounce the victory of Egypt’s former military chief Abdul Fattah al-Sisi in the presidential elections conducted this week. The event was organized by the Peoples Advocacy Organization (PAO) and other Islamic groups including Sudan’s Islamic Movement (IM), Islamic Constitution Front (ICF), Muslim Brotherhood, Association of Islamic Scholars and Preachers (AISP), Ansar Charity Association (ACA), and Tigani sufi order.
Read More: http://www.sudantribune.com/
Foreign Ministry Renews Full Respect to Will of Egyptian People
(Sudan Vision) Foreign Ministry welcomed completion of presidential elections in Egypt and renewed its full respect to the sisterly Egyptian people’s choice. Official Spokesman of the Foreign Ministry, Ambassador Abubakar Al-Sidiq said in a statement to SUNA that the Ministry hopes that completion of the presidential election and its results will be a step for achieving political stability, and national reconciliation and consensus in Egypt. He stated that the Ministry is looking forward and hope that the coming period will see further development in relations between two countries in a way which will conform to the desires of the two sisterly people.
Read More: http://news.sudanvisiondaily.com/
Sudan won’t install Iranian anti-aircraft missiles
(Associated Press) Sudan said Friday that it won’t install Iranian anti-aircraft missiles in the country after earlier exploring the idea following suspected Israeli airstrikes there in 2012. A statement from Sudan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said the country wouldn’t install the defensive missiles “for fear it could be misinterpreted by some Gulf states.” Sudan has been engaged in various armed conflicts for many years. Its government has been at war with rebels in the western region of Darfur and with its neighbors in South Sudan, which broke away to become Africa’s newest country in 2011. Sudan was a major hub for al-Qaida militants and remains a transit for weapon smugglers and African migrant traffickers.
Read More: http://www.washingtonpost.com/
Arrest of Sudanese opposition figure sparks protests
(World Bulletin) About 600 Sudanese protesters chanted and waved banners and flags after Friday prayers in the capital Khartoum, demanding the release of opposition leader Sadiq al-Mahdi who was arrested two weeks ago. Mahdi, head of the opposition Umma Party, was detained after the public prosecutor opened an investigation into charges he insulted state security forces over a surge in violence in the western Darfur region. Security forces, including dozens of riot police holding plastic shields, surrounded the demonstrators as they gathered at the Imam Abdel Rahman mosque in the Omdurman district of Khartoum to protest the detention.
Read More: http://www.worldbulletin.net/=
Sudan’s 2015 elections will not be delayed, says parliament speaker
(Sudan Tribune) Sudan’s parliament speaker, al-Fatih Izz al-Din, has revealed that the ruling National Congress Party (NCP) will introduce a major amendment to elections law allowing adoption of proportional representation but cautioned that the 2015 general elections will not be delayed. The move would mean that all political forces will be represented in the parliament irrespective of the size of its constituency. Izz al-Din, who spoke at a base conference of the NCP in the locality of UmBada on Friday, categorically dismissed any possibility for delaying the upcoming elections, saying it will not be delayed even for “one hour”. Sudan’s general elections are set to be held in April 2015 but opposition parties threatened to boycott it saying the NCP holds absolute control over power and refuses to make any compromises to end the civil war and allow public freedoms.
Read More: http://www.sudantribune.com/
UNSC renews mandate of Abyei peacekeeping mission
(Sudan Tribune) The United Nations Security Council on Thursday renewed the mandate of its peacekeeping mission in Abyei, calling for the establishment of an administration and council in the disputed area. The 15-member Council, in an unanimously adopted resolution, decided to extend until 15 October 2014 the mandate of the United Nations Interim Security Force for Abyei (UNISFA) and that its protection of civilians mandate shall include taking the necessary actions to protect civilians under imminent threat of physical violence, irrespective of the source of such violence.
Read More: http://www.sudantribune.com/