EUROPEAN UNION NEWS DIGEST
Sudan, SPLM-N peace talks adjourned until next month
(Sudan Tribune) The chair of the African Union High-Level Implementation Panel (AUHIP), Thabo Mbeki, has announced that talks between Sudan’s government and rebel Sudan People’s Liberation Movement/North (SPLM-N) which sought to end the two-and-half-year conflict in South Kordofan and Blue Nile have been suspended for ten days. Mbeki said at a press conference on Tuesday the ten-day hiatus is meant to give delegates time to consult on proposals put forth by the AUHIP with their respective leaders. But the former South African president did not provide details regarding the proposals. The same sources pointed that negotiations stalled because the government delegation insisted that the objective of talks is to settle the conflict in the two areas while the SPLM-N delegation called for a holistic approach to solve Sudan’s problems.
Source: http://www.sudantribune.com/
‘SPLM-N will discuss AUHIP proposal’: Malik Agar
(Radio Dabanga) The chairman of the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement-North (SPLM-N), Malik Agar, commented on the first round of direct negotiations between the Sudanese government and the SPLM-N in Addis Ababa, in an interview with Radio Dabanga, of which the first part is published on Wednesday. Malik Agar, who is also chairman of the Sudan Revolutionary Front (SRF, an alliance of opposition forces), told Radio Dabanga that the “SPLM-N’s position was, and still is a comprehensive solution. A comprehensive solution is definitely the best for the Sudan crises. We are convinced that the armed conflicts in South Kordofan and the Blue Nile cannot be ended without solving all the crises in Sudan.” According to Agar, “our historic responsibility requires from all of us to stop these wars, by seriously addressing the root causes of the problem. Only in this way we will be able to achieve a just and comprehensive peace. Meanwhile, authorities of SouthKordofanState announced that SPLM-N forces shelled its capital Kadugli with four Katyusha rockets on Monday, one day after the Addis Ababa negotiations collapsed.
Source: https://www.radiodabanga.org/
Sudan’s justice ministry files charges over Darfur tribal clashes
(Sudan Tribune) The Sudanese ministry of justice has recommended the trial of suspects in connection the clashes which took place between Rizeigat and Maalia tribes in East Darfur state last summer. It announced that charges were filed against the suspects on counts of premeditated murder, serious harm, and destruction. A commission of inquiry formed by the ministry said that it questioned under oath the ex-governor of East Darfur state Abdel-Hamid Musa Kasha and the current acting governor besides the former governor of South Darfur state, al-Hag Atta al-Mannan.
Source: http://www.sudantribune.com/
UN Independent Expert Values High Sudanese Government Efforts on Human Rights Improvement
(Sudan Vision) The UN Independent Expert on the situation of human rights in the Sudan, Professor Mashood Adebayo Baderin lauded the efforts which the Sudanese government is exerting to improve the situations of human rights in the country. In a press conference following his 4th mission to the Sudan, Baderin said that the Sudanese government expressed considerable flexibility in providing the required information and data, pointing out to its acceptance to his visit to DarfurStates and South Kordofan as well to inspect personally on the improvement of human rights’ situations.
Source: http://news.sudanvisiondaily.com/
Man jailed for stabbing Russia diplomat, wife in Khartoum
(Global Post) A man from the Central African Republic who stabbed a Russian diplomat and his wife in Khartoum has been jailed for three years, Russia’s embassy in Sudan said on Wednesday. The couple were attacked just outside their Khartoum diplomatic mission on January 28, in a rare example of violence against foreigners in Sudan. Police said the attacker, grieving the death of his brother in the Central African Republic which borders Sudan, asked the Russians if they were French and then knifed them. Thousands of African and French troops have been deployed in Central African Republic on a mission to halt sectarian killings.
Source: http://www.globalpost.com/