♦ Sudan: This week’s news in brief ♦

A compact weekly digest of Dabanga Sudan's news highlights from Darfur and Sudan

♦  Juba peace talks: Agreement on Darfur natural resources

April 27 – 2020 JUBA The Sudanese government and the armed movements negotiating a peace deal in Juba have agreed that Khartoum will allocate 40 per cent of the natural resources in the western region to Darfur itself.

Spokesman for the South Sudanese mediation committee Dhieu Mathok reported yesterday that the two sides made a deal on the allocation of 40 per cent of Darfur’s natural resources such as oil and minerals to Darfur in the coming 10 years.

In mid-March, it was agreed that Darfur will be one province again, and will be able to use its resources and funds without interference from Khartoum. They further consented to establish a fund for peace and sustainable development in Darfur.

Concerning the last items of power-sharing to be agreed on the appointment of civilian governors and the formation of the Parliament, Mathok explained that there are ratios proposed by the government, the Darfur rebel movements, and other stakeholders, that need to be discussed at “leadership level”.

On Thursday, the government and the Sudan Revolutionary Front (SRF) rebel alliance reached an accord on the addition of four seats to the Sovereign Council in favour of the Darfur movements.

Mathok said that the rebel groups and the Sudanese government delegation chaired by Lt Gen Khalid Abdeen, Head of the Security Arrangements Committee, also discussed the way the security arrangements, the last file of the Darfur track, will be handled.

♦  Sudan govt seizes assets of Islamic movement leaders

April 24 – 2020 KHARTOUM Sudan’s Anti-Corruption Committee has confiscated 79 real estate properties that were illegally acquired by leading members of the country’s Islamic movement during the regime of ousted President Omar Al Bashir.

On Thursday, the committee announced that the confiscated properties in total amount to more than 36 million square metres, with a value of $1.20 billion.

Islamic movement leader Abdelbasit Hamza comes at the top of the list. He owned the Friendship Palace Hotel and surrounding areas in Khartoum, as well as land in other parts of the capital. He had the majority of shares of the Salam Rotana Hotel and the Afra Mall, and a large number of shares of the MTN Sudan telecommunication company.

The anti-fraud operations included the seizure of 24 plots of land, including 22 plots of land estimated at more than 171,000 square metres in El Jereif in Khartoum owned by El Haj Ata El Mannan, Secretary-General of the Islamic Daawa organisation.

Mohamed El Faki, Member of the Sovereign Council and Deputy Chairman of the Anti-Corruption Committee, said that the recovered funds will enhance the economic situation in the country.

More news from Radio Dabanga:

237 coronavirus cases registered in Sudan

April 27 – 2020 KHARTOUM / ZALINGEI The Sudanese Ministry of Health reported 24 new Covid-19 cases on Sunday. The total number of registered coronavirus patients is now 237. 21 have died, and 20 recovered. Of the …

DiCarlo to UN Security Council: ‘We must do everything we can to support Sudan’

April 26 – 2020 NEW YORK In a briefing to the United Nations Security Council on Sudan on Friday, Under-Secretary-General for Political and Peacebuilding Affairs Rosemary DiCarlo called on the UN to “do everything …

Darfur violence: Seven dead, young woman raped

April 24 – 2020 KASS / SARAF OMRA / TURR Violent incidents in Darfur led to the death of seven people in the past two days. On Monday, a 17-year old woman was raped. In an attack on a North Darfur village, a number of …

Sudan, South Sudan mourn death of Mansour Khalid

April 24 – 2020 KHARTOUM / JUBA On Thursday, Prime Minister Abdallah Hamdok paid tribute to Dr Mansour Khalid, politician, diplomat, thinker, and historian, who passed away at the age of 89 in Khartoum on Wednesday …

Sudan timeline Jan-March 2020: Little relief to Sudan’s economic, security woes

April 24 – 2020 DABANGA SUDAN The Sudanese peace talks being held in Juba seem to be producing paydirt as rebels and government delegations move closer to agreements on the various negotiation tracks. However …

Sudan’s Umma Party freezes FFC membership, proposes ‘new social contract’

April 23 – 2020 KHARTOUM On Wednesday, the Sudanese Umma Party under the leadership of El Sadig El Mahdi suspended its activities on all levels for the Forces for Freedom and Change (FFC). It called for “a new social …

Sudan cabinet takes stronger coronavirus measures

April 22 – 2020 KHARTOUM The Council of Ministers decided yesterday to take more stringent measures to control the movement of people during the lockdown. The council directed that measures be put in place that enable …

Sudan’s cooking gas and bread shortage puts anti-Covid-19 social distancing under pressure

April 21 – 2020 KHARTOUM / PORT SUDAN Social distancing as a precaution against the spread of the coronavirus (Covid-19) in the Sudanese capital Khartoum and the three main cities has been under pressure as long queues …

This digest is an excerpt from the weekly Sudan News Update. Subscribe here to receive the newsletter directly in your inbox.

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