Severe Diplomatic Crisis between Khartoum, African Union

The chairman of the African Union Commission, Moussa Faki (Archive photo)
The chairman of the African Union Commission, Moussa Faki (Archive photo)
TT

Severe Diplomatic Crisis between Khartoum, African Union

The chairman of the African Union Commission, Moussa Faki (Archive photo)
The chairman of the African Union Commission, Moussa Faki (Archive photo)

A severe diplomatic crisis erupted between the Sudanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the African Union, following a meeting held by the current president of the African Commission with an official from the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), which Khartoum considered a dangerous precedent, accusing the Commission of double standards.

Advisor to the RSF, Youssef Ezzat, announced on Sunday on the X platform (formerly Twitter) that he met with the chairman of the African Union Commission, Moussa Faki, in Addis Ababa, in the presence of his office director, Mohamed Al-Hassan Ould Labat.

In a statement on Monday, the Sudanese Foreign Ministry denounced the meeting, describing it as a “dangerous precedent” in the work of the union... and tantamount to granting armed rebel movements and militias a legitimacy that they do not deserve.
The ministry added that the meeting is “a clear violation of the norms of the continental organization, and all international organizations, as groupings of sovereign states, in which there is no place for rebel movements and criminal terrorist militias.”

The African Union issued a sharp response on Friday, describing the Sudanese Foreign Ministry’s statement as “irresponsible.”

“The African Union will remain unperturbed in its decisive will to pool efforts with all its African and Arab brothers and with all our international partners to build, with determination and method, a political process, based on the relevant principles and decisions of the Organization,” read the statement, which was signed by Mohamed El Hacen Lebatt, spokesperson of the Chairperson of the AU Commission on Sudanese dossier.

Lebatt also said: “It should be recalled that this approach is in line with the Decisions and Recommendations of the AU Peace and Security Council, which requested the Chairperson of the Commission to intensify, to this end, his efforts with all parties without exception.”

He continued: “It should also be recalled that all the international actors trying to contribute to the solution of this crisis (for example, the Jeddah Process) adopted the same approach, without any Sudanese party expressing any reservation on the matter.”

The Sudanese Foreign Ministry responded to Ould Lebbat’s statement, saying that he used inappropriate and hateful expressions. It added that some of the decisions of the Office of the President of the Commission are characterized by double standards and inconsistency, and serve an agenda that does not represent the interests of the continent.

In a statement on Thursday, the Sudanese Foreign Ministry threatened to consider Sudan’s continued membership in the Intergovernmental Development Organization (IGAD), in protest against a statement issued by the heads of the member states of the organization, which adhered to Kenya’s presidency of the Quartet Committee to solve the Sudanese crisis.

The ministry renewed its accusation that Kenya was biased and hosted the leaders of the “rebel” Rapid Support Forces, expressing regret that the statement did not contain any reference to the Government of Sudan, and the need to consult with it and obtain its approval in the steps that IGAD intends to take regarding the crisis.



US Defers Removal of Some Lebanese, Citing Israel-Hezbollah Tensions

Smoke billows from a site targeted by Lebanon's Hezbollah, along the northern Israeli border with Lebanon on July 25, 2024, amid ongoing cross-border clashes between Israeli troops and Hezbollah fighters. (AFP)
Smoke billows from a site targeted by Lebanon's Hezbollah, along the northern Israeli border with Lebanon on July 25, 2024, amid ongoing cross-border clashes between Israeli troops and Hezbollah fighters. (AFP)
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US Defers Removal of Some Lebanese, Citing Israel-Hezbollah Tensions

Smoke billows from a site targeted by Lebanon's Hezbollah, along the northern Israeli border with Lebanon on July 25, 2024, amid ongoing cross-border clashes between Israeli troops and Hezbollah fighters. (AFP)
Smoke billows from a site targeted by Lebanon's Hezbollah, along the northern Israeli border with Lebanon on July 25, 2024, amid ongoing cross-border clashes between Israeli troops and Hezbollah fighters. (AFP)

The United States is deferring the removal of certain Lebanese citizens from the country, President Joe Biden said on Friday, citing humanitarian conditions in southern Lebanon amid tensions between Israel and Hezbollah.

The deferred designation, which lasts 18 months, allows Lebanese citizens to remain in the country with the right to work, according to a memorandum Biden sent to the Department of Homeland Security.

"Humanitarian conditions in southern Lebanon have significantly deteriorated due to tensions between Hezbollah and Israel," Biden said in the memo.

"While I remain focused on de-escalating the situation and improving humanitarian conditions, many civilians remain in danger; therefore, I am directing the deferral of removal of certain Lebanese nationals who are present in the United States."

Israel and Iran-backed Hezbollah have been trading fire since Hezbollah announced a "support front" with Palestinians shortly after its ally Hamas attacked southern Israeli border communities on Oct. 7, triggering Israel's military assault in Gaza.

The fighting in Lebanon has killed more than 100 civilians and more than 300 Hezbollah fighters, according to a Reuters tally, and led to levels of destruction in Lebanese border towns and villages not seen since the 2006 Israel-Lebanon war.

On the Israeli side, 10 Israeli civilians, a foreign agricultural worker and 20 Israeli soldiers have been killed. Tens of thousands have been evacuated from both sides of the border.