♦ Sudan: This week’s news in brief ♦

A compact digest of the past week's most-read highlights, from the heart of Sudan. Subscribe to receive this digest weekly in your inbox.

Envoys laud ICC Prosecutor Khan’s visit to Sudan

August 28 – 2022 KHARTOUM Leading international Ambassadors and Heads of Mission to Sudan, have issued a joint statement welcoming the visit by the Chief Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC), Karim Khan, to Sudan last week, as “the latest demonstration of increased cooperation between the Transitional Government of Sudan and the ICC in pursuing justice for victims of crimes committed by the Al Bashir regime”.

The joint statement signed by Ambassadors and Heads of Mission from Canada, the European Union, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, and the United States of America, welcomes the visit of the ICC prosecutor and also laud “the progress in the case against Ali Kushayb in The Hague, and the government of Sudan’s assistance to the prosecutor, including facilitating the collection of evidence”.

Drug abuse in Sudan: ‘the tip of the iceberg’

August 26 – 2022 KHARTOUM Contractors who cannot keep construction workers for more than one day, students who might use drugs to spike others’ drinks, street vendors selling ‘special tea’, rumours about police officers selling confiscated drugs. Sudan, in particular its capital, has been witnessing growing drug abuse in the past decade, with an explosive but under-reported increase in the past few years.

“In particular since 2015, when the economic situation really began to deteriorate, people discovered that drug trade was an easy way to quickly earn money,” a former police officer, now a rickshaw driver, told Radio Dabanga from the Sudanese capital. “Problems grew over the years, but now there is an explosive increase.”

Charters, agreements, conferences… quest to unite Sudan's opposition continues
August 30 – 2022 KHARTOUM Sudan’s opposition has witnessed various calls and initiatives to overcome divisions and form a united front against the military junta that took power in the October 25 military coup. The resistance committees are working on unifying two charters, but the Forcer for Freedom and Change-Central Council refused to merge theirs.
 
Japan pledges $4.5 million to fund WFP emergency aid to Sudan displaced
August 30 – 2022 KHARTOUM The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP), which has faced a funding shortfall of $366 million until the end of 2022, has welcomed a contribution of $4.5 million from the government of Japan to provide life-saving food assistance to internally displaced people in Sudan. The funding will enable WFP to purchase 3,600 tonnes of sorghum to support 130,000 displaced in Sudan,.
 
Sudan Finance Ministry expects no ‘external support’ for 2023 budget
August 29 – 2022 KHARTOUM The Minister of Finance and Economic Planning, Jibril Ibrahim, expects that the country’s budget for 2023, like the current year’s budget, “will be devoid of external support”. Last week, he pointed to the importance of expanding industrial mining and increasing the agricultural production for Sudan to become self-sufficient in the future.
 
Sudanese youth on police head-shaving campaign: ‘Better do it yourself’
August 26 – 2022 KHARTOUM On Monday, the police carried out a ‘head-shaving campaign’ targeting a group of young men at the Bahri Market in Khartoum North. In response, a group of young Sudanese decided be ahead of the police by shaving their heads themselves. 
 
Eastern Sudan conference concludes, but not without criticism
August 26 – 2022 KHARTOUM At the end of the Conference on Crucial Issues for Eastern Sudan in Khartoum on Wednesday, 28 eastern Sudanese political parties and civil society groups signed an agreement stipulating the speedy implementation of the Eastern Sudan Track protocol. Resistance committees criticised the conference.
 
Sudan floods: No sign of relief from torrential rains as 23 more people die
August 26 – 2022 NYALA / KABKABIYA / EL FASHER / EL MANAGIL / SAHABA No sign of relief from ongoing rains and floods in Sudan as torrential rains caused the death of 22 people in Darfur and one person in northern Sudan. In South Darfur, 16,000 homes were completely destroyed.
 
ICC Prosecutor requests access to ousted Sudan dictator Al Bashir
August 25 – 2022 KHARTOUM The Chief Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC), Karim Khan, confirmed that he had requested access to ousted President Omar Al Bashir concerning cases of alleged war crimes in Darfur.
 
Sudan’s National Accord Forces announce political vision
August 24 – 2022 KHARTOUM The Forces for Freedom and Change-National Accord (FFC-NA), also called the National Accord Forces (NFA), signed a political declaration on Tuesday aiming to achieve civilian rule and the formation of a sovereign ruling body for the next 30 months.
 
ICC Prosecutor suggests holding a UN Security Council session in Sudan
August 24 – 2022 KHARTOUM The Chief Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC), Karim Khan, has warned of the dire consequences of impunity for those Sudanese wanted by the court and said it could lead to more crimes against humanity. “The nightmare for thousands of Darfuris has not ended.”