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DOHA: Qatar’s Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani received a letter from Russian President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday concerning ways to support and strengthen bilateral relations between the two countries as well as issues of mutual interest, the Qatari state news agency said.
Putin’s letter was delivered to al-Thani by the Russian Energy Minister Nikolay Shulginov, who is currently in Doha attending a gas exporters conference.
NEW YORK: UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Friday urged both South Sudan’s leadership and the international community to act swiftly to prevent further devastation in the war-torn country, warning that ethnic and political targeting by security forces could spiral into a broader regional conflict.
Referring to the escalating violence in South Sudan, including airstrikes on civilians, Guterres said: “All the dark clouds of a perfect storm have descended upon the people of the world’s newest country — and one of the poorest.”
On Wednesday, an armed convoy led by the nation’s top security officials, including its defense minister, entered the home of First Vice President Riek Machar in Juba, disarmed his bodyguards and placed him under house arrest.
Tensions between Machar and President Salva Kiir had been worsening for several weeks. In August 2018, the two leaders reached a peace agreement that ended a five-year civil war between their forces, which had resulted in almost 400,000 deaths.
However, In the seven years since, their relationship has grown more strained due to ethnic conflicts and occasional outbreaks of violence. Machar’s party said his detention effectively signaled the collapse of the peace deal.
This week, the UN reported that barrel bombs thought to contain highly flammable liquid were used in airstrikes during clashes between the army and a rebel group formerly associated with Machar.
Speaking to reporters in New York, Guterres said that “the peace agreement is in shambles,” and called for the immediate release of all detained officials and the full restoration of the Government of National Unity, which he described as crucial to moving toward peace.
“The Horn of Africa is already in turmoil and cannot afford another conflict,” he warned, “and nor can the people of South Sudan.”
Directly addressing the South Sudanese leadership, Guterres said: “End the politics of confrontation. Release detained military and civilian officials now. Fully restore the Government of National Unity. And vigorously implement the promises you made through your commitments to the peace agreement — which is the only legal framework to peaceful, free and fair elections in December 2026.”
The humanitarian situation in South Sudan is alarming, with almost 75 percent of the population requiring aid and at least half facing severe food insecurity. A cholera outbreak is adding to the crisis.
Over 1 million refugees have fled to neighboring countries, primarily Sudan, since fighting erupted. Guterres also noted a catastrophic economic collapse, with oil revenues plummeting and inflation soaring to 300 percent.
With the world’s youngest country facing such dire circumstances, the UN secretary-general warned of the potential for a repeat of the civil wars in 2013 and 2016.
Guterres called for renewed diplomatic efforts, emphasizing the need for dialogue and de-escalation.
“South Sudan is at a crossroads,” he said. “For the sake of the long-suffering people, it is time for all parties to put down the weapons and focus on rebuilding the country.”
The UN chief said that he had spoken with the chairperson of the African Union Commission and expressed strong support for the AU’s initiative to deploy the “Panel of the Wise” and for continuing efforts by Kenyan President William Ruto’s special envoy.
Despite the urgency of the situation, Guterres lamented that South Sudan has largely faded from international attention. He pleaded for increased diplomatic and financial support to address the mounting crisis.
“The people of South Sudan are close to my heart. They had enormous hopes and aspirations, but sadly, they have not had the leadership they deserve.”
There have been increasing international calls for a unified stance on the peace process in South Sudan, with the UN, AU, and the Intergovernmental Authority on Development trade bloc all urging the restoration of peace and stability.
WASHINGTON: The US is fully committed to ending the conflict in Sudan, working closely with regional and international partners — including Saudi Arabia — to bring about a cessation of hostilities and pave the way for a civilian-led government, an official said on Friday.
Speaking to Asharq Al-Awsat, Mignon Houston, the deputy spokesperson for the US State Department, said Washington’s priority in Sudan was to “stop the fighting.”
She said that the new administration of President Donald Trump has remained deeply engaged in Sudan and has not taken sides in the conflict, instead focusing on supporting the Sudanese people’s aspirations for a democratic and stable future.
“We know the situation in Sudan is catastrophic. It’s the largest humanitarian crisis in the world. What we’re seeing in Sudan is deplorable, and it’s important for observers and the world to know that the US remains very engaged in this issue,” Houston said.
The US is working through multiple diplomatic channels, engaging with the African Union, the UN, the Intergovernmental Authority on Development, Saudi Arabia, and other key regional actors, Houston told the newspaper.
“Our diplomatic efforts include engaging with these organizations and governments to push for a cessation of hostilities because we know this is the only way to achieve lasting peace in Sudan, create a unified Sudan, and give the Sudanese people the future they deserve,” she added.
Houston made it clear that Washington expected all foreign parties to play a constructive role in resolving the crisis, warning against engaging in negative interference.
“We have been very explicit about the need for the intervention of partners and other countries in the crisis to be constructive and lead to a cessation of hostilities. Otherwise, these countries will be complicit in prolonging the conflict, complicit in creating more suffering for the Sudanese people, and complicit in creating more instability — this will not lead to peace,” she said.
The US has also been applying diplomatic pressure through economic measures, with 31 sanctions currently imposed on both the Sudanese Armed Forces and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces.
Houston described these as a crucial tool in pushing both sides toward the negotiating table and an eventual ceasefire.
Beyond efforts through diplomatic channels, Houston highlighted the need for much-needed humanitarian assistance, revealing that Washington was actively working with international partners to support Sudanese civilians and refugees in neighboring countries.
“The US administration is also working on the humanitarian front, with significant work being done with implementing partners to support the vital needs of people in Sudan, as well as refugees in neighboring countries, and to support their efforts to accept refugees,” she said.
Houston said that during the first two weeks of March alone, 1.2 million people facing the risk of famine received life-saving humanitarian aid.
However, she added that no meaningful economic recovery or investment into Sudan could take place until the violence was stopped.
“At this time, we will focus on the Sudanese people and ending the fighting. Both parties are responsible for the destruction in Sudan and for regional instability. Therefore, our focus remains on bringing the parties to the negotiating table to create the conditions for humanitarian assistance to reach those who need it, above all else.”
Houston made it clear that Washington held both warring factions accountable for the devastation in Sudan.
“We have been very clear in this position that both sides have engaged in harmful actions that have destabilized the country and created a state of general instability,” she said.
“We have called on both sides to work together to create a political process that will lead to the establishment of a civilian-led government.”
She also underscored the role of Washington’s regional partners in mediating the crisis, urging them to prioritize the needs of the Sudanese people above political interests.
“What is more important than anything else is focusing on the needs of the Sudanese people; their needs right now should come first,” she said.
Houston also said that under the leadership of Secretary of State Marco Rubio, the State Department continues to work with humanitarian organizations and is calling on donor nations to increase their support.
“The department also continues to call on regional actors and international governments to do more, and on donor countries to do more, because what we are seeing in Sudan and South Sudan demonstrates the importance of a concerted global effort to resolve the crisis.”
KHARTOUM: Residents of Sudan’s Tuti island at the confluence of the Blue Nile and White Nile have emerged from paramilitary control to speak of hardships suffered and relief that their oppressors have been driven away.
They say Sudan’s Rapid Support Forces, who have been forced by the army off the island between the capital Khartoum and its twin city Omdurman, would block people from medical treatment, jail others and extort inhabitants.
“I suffered from severe urinary retention,” recalled elderly islander Omar Al-Hassan, saying an RSF member stopped him from crossing a bridge to see doctors.
“He claimed our papers were incomplete, but we had all the necessary documents. He just wanted money.”
The RSF, whose war with the army erupted in April 2023 and which still controls swathes of west Sudan, did not respond to a request for comment by Reuters. The RSF has either denied it violates human rights or said it would hold perpetrators to account, while accusing the army of widespread abuses.
The UN accuses both sides in the civil war of abuses that may amount to war crimes.
Tuti island, with its green landscape overlooking the majestic Nile waters, was once one of Sudan’s most soothing spots, offering relaxation in a nation with a long history of war.
Its population of about 10,000 could relax on beaches near lemon trees swaying in the breeze. People would also pass time at coffee shops, puffing on water pipes, perhaps discussing Sudan’s complex, combustible politics.
That was before the conflict between the army and RSF — once partners in a coup that toppled veteran autocrat Omar Hassan Al-Bashir — erupted and ravaged Sudan.
’TUTI IS FREE’
Now, in a microcosm of the war’s devastation, Tuti’s close-knit farming community are at risk of famine and have been ravaged by dengue fever.
Sudan’s military, headed by career army officer Abdel Fattah Al-Burhan claimed control of Khartoum, including Tuti island, this week.
“We conducted a thorough and comprehensive cleanup of all areas of the island ... We tell the people to return and come back,” said soldier Al-Tahir Al-Tayeb.
“We will only take our rights by this,” he added, tapping on his gun. “We say to them, Tuti is free, and God is great.”
Nearby, a woman walked by a shop surveying destruction as people lingered at a mosque.
RSF leader Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, known as Hemedti, rose from lowly beginnings to head a widely feared Arab militia that crushed a revolt in Darfur, winning him influence and eventually a role as the country’s second most powerful man, and one of its richest, as an enforcer for Bashir.
The RSF, menacing young men armed with rocket-propelled grenades and machine-guns mounted on trucks, mastered desert warfare in the Darfur region but lack the discipline of the regular army.
That was clear on Tuti island, said resident Abdul Fattah Abdullah, describing how RSF men followed him on four motorcycles and grabbed him as he was carrying vegetables from a market.
The next 20 days, locked up in a small room with 32 army officers, were the hardest in his whole life, he complained. It did not end there. RSF fighters demanded the equivalent of $400, he said.
“They harassed people, demanding either their gold or their money. May God punish them,” said Abdullah.
GAZA CITY: Hamas spokesman Basem Naim told AFP Friday that talks over a ceasefire deal between the Palestinian Islamist movement and mediators are gaining momentum as Israel continues intensive operations in Gaza.
“We hope that the coming days will bring a real breakthrough in the war situation, following intensified communications with and between mediators in recent days,” Naim told AFP.
Palestinian sources close to Hamas had told AFP that talks began Thursday evening between the militant group and mediators from Egypt and Qatar to revive a ceasefire and hostage release deal for Gaza.
Naim said Friday the proposal “aims to achieve a ceasefire, open border crossings, (and) allow humanitarian aid in.”
Most importantly, he said, the proposal aims to bring about a resumption in “negotiations on the second phase, which must lead to a complete end to the war and the withdrawal of occupation forces.”
A fragile ceasefire that had brought weeks of relative calm to the Gaza Strip ended on March 18 when Israel resumed its bombing campaign across the territory.
Negotiations on a second phase of the truce had stalled — Israel wanted the ceasefire’s initial phase extended, while Hamas demanded talks on a second stage that was meant to lead to a permanent ceasefire.
According to the health ministry in Hamas-run Gaza, at least 896 people have been killed since Israel resumed strikes.
Days later, Palestinian militants resumed rocket launches toward Israel from Gaza.
During the first phase of the truce which took hold on January 19, 1,800 Palestinian prisoners were freed in exchange for 33 hostages held in Gaza, most of them since the start of the war on October 7, 2023.
Of 251 hostages seized by Palestinian militants during Hamas’s attack which triggered the war, 58 are still held in Gaza, including 34 the Israeli military says are dead.
The talks in Doha started a day after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu threatened to seize parts of Gaza if Hamas did not release hostages, and Hamas warned they would return “in coffins” if Israel did not stop bombing the Palestinian territory.
Naim said Hamas was approaching talks “with full responsibility, positivity, and flexibility,” focusing on ending the war.
BRUSSELS: The EU on Friday urged South Sudan’s President Salva Kiir to reverse course and defuse tensions after the arrest of his rival, First Vice President Riek Machar, sparked fears the country was tipping toward civil war.
The bloc’s executive body, the European Commission, said it was scaling back staff presence in the African nation due to the deteriorating security outlook.
“The European Union expresses its deep concern about the house arrest of First Vice President Machar. We call on President Kiir to reverse this action and defuse the situation,” commission spokesman Anouar El Anouni said.
Machar’s arrest late on Wednesday marked a dramatic escalation of tensions that have been building for weeks in the world’s youngest country.
A power-sharing deal between Kiir and Machar has been gradually unraveling, risking a return of the civil war that killed around 400,000 people between 2013 and 2018.
“Due to the deteriorating security situation in South Sudan, we have taken the decision to temporarily scale back the presence of staff within the European Union delegation,” El Anouni told a press conference in Brussels.
Juba appeared calm on Friday with shops open and people on the streets, an AFP correspondent saw.
But a heavy military presence including a tank remained outside Machar’s home, which is located just meters (yards) from the president’s home.
South Sudan — which declared independence from Sudan in 2011 — has remained plagued by poverty and insecurity since the 2018 peace deal.
Analysts say the aging Kiir, 73, has been seeking to ensure his succession and sideline Machar politically for months through cabinet reshuffles.
More than 20 of Machar’s political and military allies in the unity government and army have also been arrested since February, many held incommunicado.
