‘Lifting of US sanctions will only benefit Khartoum regime’: Sudan rebel groups

The decision of the US State Department to lift the trade embargo on Sudan without any control gives the Sudanese regime “a blank check to continue with its heinous crimes”, said the Darfur rebel Justice and Equality Movement (JEM) in a statement on Sunday.

The rebel group called on Washington “to immediately impose a package of specific measures that selectively target the perpetrators of genocide who obstruct the provision of humanitarian aid, commit human rights violations, and undermine peace efforts”.

JEM says it is looking forward to US actions concerning the Sudanese officials wanted by the International Criminal Court. They should be brought to justice, “as President Donald Trump promised in his speech to the Human Rights Committee in the Congress”.

The Sudan Liberation Movement faction led by Minni Minawi (SLM-MM) stated on Sunday that the sanctions relief “should have conditioned the realisation of peace, a peace that comes through democracy, freedoms, and equal citizenship.

“The lifting of sanctions will only benefit the Khartoum regime which constitutes the direct cause of the more than five million innocent people trying to survive in refugee camps and camps for the displaced”.

The SLM-MM further said it does not expect that the Sudanese government “will change its behaviour and its support to terrorists”.

“The lifting of sanctions will only benefit the Khartoum regime which constitutes the direct cause of the more than five million innocent people trying to survive in refugee camps and camps for the displaced”.

Also Yasir Arman, Secretary-General of the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement-North headed by Malik Agar, predicts that “The Sudanese people will not benefit from the US sanctions relief, because the corrupt regime will direct any benefits towards its own people, the ruling minority at the top”.

In a statement on Sunday, Arman said that “The lifting of the sanctions indicates a new political era that requires unity among the opposition groups that should formulate a clear political agenda.

“The democratic forces in Sudan expect the US Administration and the Congress to compel the Sudanese government to abide by its promises on human rights, peace, and the delivery of humanitarian aid, as this is the only way to transform Sudan from being a model of political Islam to a state in peace with its people, the region, and the international community,” the rebel leader stated.