NUP decry Sudan’s ‘reckless and irrational’ involvement in Yemen war

Sudan’s National Umma Party (NUP) led by Imam El Sadig El Mahdi has strongly criticised the government for its involvement in Yemen war, where Sudanese troops have fought alongside a mainly Gulf coalition since 2015.

Yesterday the party described in a statement the government's position as “reckless and irrational, where blood is for payment without regard to the feelings of the Yemeni people”.

The political bureau of the NUP said “The participation of the Sudanese forces in the war in Yemen has not been inspired by the history of the Sudanese soldier; which has led to a flood of accusations and criticism that will inevitably affect the overall Sudanese foreign relations.

In its statement, the NUP announced that it would not participate in any elections that would take place under empowerment and coercive state as declared for 2020 which it described as null and void. The Umma Party has held the government responsible for renewing the tribal conflict between Rizeigat and Maaliya.

On Tuesday the political bureau of the Umma Party counted at the end of its meetings 151 tribal conflicts during the era of the current regime, accusing the Khartoum government of “fuelling the factors of conflict, division among the tribes, arming all parties and entering them in the wars of ideology and absurd wars”.

Yesterday Dr Mohamed El Mahdi Hassan explained to Radio Dabanga that the party has formed a higher committee to study the sedition and tribal conflicts and adopt a map of positive intervention in order to restore peace and stability among the community components.

Coalition

Sudan has had hundreds of troops in Yemen since 2015 to bolster the mostly Gulf Arab alliance fighting the Iran-allied Houthi movement. The coalition includes the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar, Egypt, Jordan, Morocco, Senegal and Sudan.

In April, five Sudanese soldiers were killed when Yemeni forces backed by the coalition took control of a volcanic mountain on a road toward the Khalid bin al-Waleed military base, a key stronghold of the Houthis in southwestern Taiz province.

In June, 17 Sudanese soldiers were killed and dozens more wounded at Midi of Hajjah province, in north-west Yemen.

Last week, troops of the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) who were bound for Yemen paraded in the South Darfur capital of Nyala, with senior officers taking the salute.

Major General Mohamed Ali Ibrahim, commander of the Sixteenth Infantry in Nyala urged the soldiers heading to Yemen “to provide a model in dedication, steadfastness and discipline on the path of their predecessors there”.