Al Bashir invites Chad’s Deby to Darfur celebration

Sudan’s President Omar Al Bashir has sent an invitation to Chadian President Idris Deby to participate in the celebration of the end of the Doha Document for Peace in Darfur (DDPD) scheduled for July 20.

The North Darfur Government has announced the participation of the Emir of Qatar, Sheikh Tamim Bin Hamad Al Thani, and the formation of a high committee to receive the Sudanese President.

In a press statement on Wednesday, North Darfur government spokesman, Abdelkarim Khalifa said that the visit comes within the framework of the celebration of the end of the Darfur Regional Authority, and the launch of the new mechanism to complement the rest of the Doha Document items.

The Doha Document for Peace in Darfur, signed in 2011, stipulated the holding of the referendum, as a way for the region’s citizens to define the permanent administrative status.

Following a controversial referendum in April 2016, a polling result against the unification of Darfur as a single province meant that the region would remain divided in five states, that the transitional Darfur Regional Authority (DRA) will be dissolved, giving Khartoum more power over Darfur.

A result in favour of the unification would have led to the creation of a regional government, as five states joined into one semi-autonomous Darfur state.