SUDAN NEWS ALERT: AP – Sudan’s top general lifts state of emergency from coup

29/5/2022: AP – Sudan’s top general lifts state of emergency from coup, by Samy Magdy

 AP report that two civilians were killed in a crackdown on pro-democracy protesters who once again took to the streets of the capital to denounce the Oct. 25 coup.

Hundreds of people marched in Khartoum, where security forces violently dispersed the crowds and chased them in the streets, according to activists.

 The two were killed during protests in Khartoum’s Kalakla neighborhood. One was shot by security forces and the other suffocated after inhaling tear gas, said the Sudan Doctors Committee, which is part of the pro-democracy movement.

At least 98 people have been killed and over 4,300 wounded in the government crackdown on anti-coup protests since October, according to the medical group.

SUDAN INSIGHT ALERT: Asharq Al-Awsat - Sudan Opposition to Asharq Al-Awsat: Counter-Revolt Wants to Impede Talks with Military

 29/5/19: Asharq Al-Awsat – Sudan Opposition to Asharq Al-Awsat: Counter-Revolt Wants to Impede Talks with Military, by Mohammed Amin Yassine

 In an interview with Al Sharq Al Awsat, Ali Al Sanhouri, a leading member of the DFC, warned that some political powers may seek a side agreement with the TMC to act as a “fake replacement” to the deal struck with the DFC.  He vowed that: “such attempts will collapse…any deal that contradicts the demands of the people will fail.” 

 Al Sanhouri said that while the TMC is keen to portray itself as the protector of the revolution and people, the DFC believes in the rule of law. However, said the lack of cohesion in the opposition negotiations delegation may be exploited by the TMC, said Al Sanhouri, when asked about Sadiq Al Mahdi’s Ummah Party’s refusal to join the strike.

Al Sanhouri also said that the two-day general strike was a “warning shot” that could lead to an open-ended political strike.

SUDAN INSIGHT ALERT: Bloomberg - Mike Pompeo is Needed in Sudan

29/5/19: Bloomberg – Mike Pompeo is Needed in Sudan, by Eli Lake

 Bloomberg columnist Eli Lake calls for US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo to visit Sudan, in order to halt the momentum of Sudan’s counterrevolution, and help show that nonviolent democratic change is possible in the Muslim world.

 Lake calls for Pompeo to publically meet with leaders of the Sudanese Professionals Association and the Declaration of Freedom and Change, to “counter the pseudo-legitimacy conferred” by Saudi Arabia, Egypt and the UAE, who hosted TMC leaders over the past week.

 In addition, Lake recommends that Pompeo send a message to Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Egyptto refrain from “thwarting” Sudan’s democratic transition.

 Lake also calls for Pompeo to condition Sudan’s removal from the state sponsor of terrorism list on the formation of a civilian-led transitional government, concluding that Pompeo can help ensure that Sudanese people’s “gains are lasting.”

SUDAN INSIGHT ALERT: Guardian - Hemedti: the feared commander pulling the strings in Sudan

29/5/19: Guardian- Hemedti: the feared commander pulling the strings in Sudan, by Jason Burke

 Jason Burke explores Himedti’s increasing power over Sudan’s transition, with western envoys and Khartoum-based activists seeing him as a man with “unlimited ambition” who “hopes to become president.’

 Burke notes that the Himedti’s Rapid Support Forces troops have been blamed for killing protesters earlier this month, and that he has warned protesters against further “chaos,” despite also publically declaring his own desire for democracy.

 Burke notes that Himedti’s supply of RSF troops to Yemen means that he can count on support from anti-Islamist states Saudi, UAE and Egypt. This means that Himedti is viewed as a counterweight to Islamists, “backed by an informal coalition of diverse supporters.”

SUDAN NEWS ALERT: AP - Protesters say clashes among security forces kill vendor

29/5/19: AP – Protesters say clashes among security forces kill vendor

 AP reports that the Sudan Doctors Committee says a a gunfight among security forces has erupted, killing a female street vendor by mistake.

 The Sudan Doctors Committee says the clashes took place Wednesday in the capital of Khartoum and that a number of protesters have been wounded.

 The committee is part of the Sudanese Professionals Association, which has been spearheading the protests

SUDAN NEWS ALERT: Reuters - Banks shuttered as Sudan opposition stages second day of strikes

29/5/19: Reuters – Banks shuttered as Sudan opposition stages second day of strikes

 Reuters reports that banks in Khartoum came to a virtual standstill on Wednesday as protest and opposition groups organised a second day of strikes.

 An employee of the Blue Nile Mashreg Bank in Khartoum said “we are ready to participate in civil disobedience if the Freedom and Change Forces ask us to.”

SUDAN NEWS ALERT: Sudan Tribune - Military junta asks rebel leader to leave Sudan

29/5/19: Sudan Tribune – Military junta asks rebel leader to leave Sudan

 Yasir Arman the deputy leader of the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement-North, said that the TMC has asked him to six times to leave Sudan, indicating that he has rejected the request.

 Arman arrived in Khartoum on Sunday without prior notice, calling for a  political declaration to end the wars in Sudan, and achieve a comprehensive peace during the transitional period.

 Arman tweeted that he rejected the TMC requests that he leave “as it is my right to stay in Sudan and to advocate for a comprehensive peaceful settlement, democracy and equal citizenship.”

 He added that: "we should be part of the political process as we are part of the Freedom and Change alliance."

SUDAN NEWS ALERT: Sudan Tribune - U.S. denies plans to receive Sudan's al-Burhan

29/5/19: Sudan Tribune – U.S. denies plans to receive Sudan’s al-Burhan

 Sudan Tribune reports that the US State Department has dismissed reports that TMC chief Abdulfattah Al Burhan is due to visit Washington, for talks on the situation in Sudan.

Andrew Burnett, Deputy Director in the office of the US Special Envoy for Sudan and South Sudan, reportedly on organized a telephone conference with Sudanese activists in the US, to brief them about the Trump administration’s position on Sudan.

"The State Department told us there are no plans for any TMC visit here," Omer Ismail, Enough Project Senior Advisor told Sudan Tribune.

Ismail added that Burnett further claimed that while some low-level bilateral engagement has occurred, there has not been any direct communication with TMC members.

SUDAN NEWS ALERT: Radio Dabanga - General strike: RSF storm Central Bank of Sudan, electricity company

29/5/19: Radio Dabanga - General strike: RSF storm Central Bank of Sudan, electricity company

 Radio Dabanga reports that  Rapid Support Forces (RSF) troops stormed the offices of the electricity company in the El Riyad district, as well as the Central Bank of Sudan.

 In a statement, the Sudanese Professionals Association (SPA) in the electricity sector, said that the RSF forced staff at some Khartoum offices to sell electricity to RSF troops at gunpoint. The RSF detained 10 striking employees, before releasing them after their colleagues threatened to cut off the electricity supply.

 Witnesses said that regular forces imposed a tight siege on the premises of the Khartoum branch of the Bank of Sudan, detaining employees and forcing them to hand them their salaries.