(Sudan Vision) – Sudan’s Mission to the United Nations managed to block the adoption of a biased resolution sponsored by Washington against Khartoum in a closed session of the Security Council on Friday for regular review of resolution 2046 on the situation between Sudan and South Sudan which is done every two weeks. The previous session was held on 9th August. Undersecretary General for Peace Keeping Operations, Edmond Mullet, presented a report to the Council stating that little progress is achieved with regard to the resolution after the wrap-up of the previous round of talks between the two countries on 8th August, saying negotiations would be resumed on 30th August. Sudan’s permanent delegate to UN, Ambassador Dafallah Al Haj Ali, said during the previous session the US delegation circulated a presidential statement welcoming the conclusion of an oil deal in Addis Ababa talks but it included some illogical paragraphs such as deploring Sudan’s non-acceptance of Mbeki’s map. The Ambassador told SUNA that the statement welcomed South Sudan’s acceptance of the map. He said Sudan Mission convinced most of the countries that the draft was unbalanced and consequently Russia, China, Azerbaijan, India and Pakistan adopted that position and the draft is put on hold but indicated that consultations were continuing to modify the text so that it is balanced and unbiased. The Ambassador explained that he met with the president of the Security Council on Friday and the president informed him that on behalf of his country (France) he sees no point in the presidential statement and that the Council should wait for the result of talks and the two parties should be encouraged to reach agreements. Dafallah told Sudan Radio that Ban Ki-moon’s report condemned the administrative decision by the co-chair of the joint committee Luka Biong whereby the Abyei Administration was formed in flagrant violation of the agreement signed between the two parties on 20th June 2010 besides violation of the UNSC resolution 2046. He said he had already sent a strong messages to the Secretary General and President of the Security Council refuting the unilateral decision by South Sudan on Abyei, adding that at the closed session of the UNSC he called for cancellation of the resolution.
The Ambassador called on the Government of South Sudan to stay committed to the concluded agreements and desist from violating them.
Sudan’s NCP welcomes propositions over security issues from political forces
(Sudan Tribune) – Sudan ruling National Congress Party (NCP) expressed its willingness to consider propositions made by political forces on the security file with the south Sudan before the resumption of talks next week. Khartoum accuses Juba of harbouring Sudanese rebel groups saying they carry out cross-border attacks against its troops. Also the failure of the two countries to demarcate the common borders complicates the operationalisation of a demilitarised zone agreed since November 2011. NCP leadership council member, Qutbi Mahdi, said Friday that his party is willing to consider any propositions submitted by the political parties to reach a lasting deal over the security file with the South Sudan within the framework of Addis Ababa process. Qutbi further said that the indirect involvement of the political forces in the talks on the security issues confirms the importance of this file but also it shows that the border demarcation, disputed areas and Abyei are resolved in a national and patriotic framework. Talks over the border demarcation are stalled since the transitional period as the two parties maintain their positions over disputed sites. Also, the two parties failed to bring uncontested evidence over the ownership of the land despite the huge efforts invested to collect maps and other data. Although political parties in Khartoum diverge with the NCP’s government over issues related to democratic transition, Islamic law and talks with the rebel groups, they generally share similar positions with the NCP on the border demaraction issue and Abyei. Following the seizure of Heglig by the South Sudanese army and statements by President Salva Kiir over the ownership of Heglig, the Sudanese political forces announced their support to the government over this issue and urged Juba to withdraw its troops from the oil area. The opposition forces and the rebel groups believe they can resolve these issues of border demarcation and Abyei through the creation of strong political and economic link between the two countries.
SAF Repels SPLA Insurgents in South Kordofan
(SUNA) – Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) announced it expelled SPLA rebels in Al-Moraib area some 29 kilometers west of Abbasiya city in SouthKordofanState inflicting on them heavy loses in lives. According to SAF spokesperson, Colonel Al-Sawarmi Khalid Saad, the SPLA rebels in South Kordofan attacked on Friday August 24th the innocent civilians and occupied Al-Moraib village, 29 kilometers west of Abbasiya city and raised the SPLA flag besides appointing a commissioner from the SPLM. They also occupied the police station and transported its equipment to their site in Abu Al-Hassan besides looting the market and desecrating the mosque. Al-Sawarmi added that SAF moved towards Al-Morain area and clashed with the rebels and expelled them outside the area, after which it conducted a wide combing operation starting from Abu Karshola up to Um Baraka and Al-Farsha as SAF managed to remove all the SPLA barricades and killed eleven. In revenge, the SPLA insurgents attempted to attack SAF twice in Al-Moraib to recapture it, but SAF confronted them killing 17 while SAF lost one martyr and nine injuries.
Sudan rebels, army clash in oil state
(Reuters) – Rebels clashed with Sudanese government forces in the oil-producing border state of South Kordofan during an Islamic holiday this week, both sides said, each claiming victory over the other. Sudan’s regions bordering newly-independent South Sudan have been convulsed by conflict since last year, forcing hundreds of thousands of people to flee their homes, according to the United Nations. Aid agencies have warned of a humanitarian catastrophe in the Border States as food stocks dwindle. The fighting has also stoked tensions between Juba and Khartoum and complicated efforts to resolve partition-related disputes. The rebel Sudan People’s Liberation Movement North (SPLM-N) said it fought off government “forces and militias” that attacked a village near the Abu Kershola settlement in South Kordofan’s northeast on Wednesday, and repulsed another attack on a village near Rashad on Thursday. Fighting continued on Friday in the al-Murib area, the rebels said in a statement. The insurgents claimed to have killed more than 30 “enemy” troops during the fighting, which coincided with the Eid al-Fitr holiday marking the end of Ramadan, and accused government forces of burning homes and looting civilian property. Sudan’s military spokesman Al-Sawarmi Khalid denied the rebel account, but confirmed the armed forces had attacked rebel positions in al-Murib on Friday. The two sides frequently make contradictory claims which are difficult to verify independently because of the remoteness of the regions where fighting takes place and restrictions placed on access for independent observers. Sudan and South Sudan are expected to resume talks in Addis Ababa on Sunday over border security and other issues. Under international pressure, the two this month reached an interim deal on oil exports, vital to both economies, but Sudan says it wants a deal to guarantee security along the border before crude flows resume.