Burhan, Erdogan Discuss Boosting Cooperation Between Sudan, Türkiye

A handout photo made available by the Turkish President Press Office shows Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (R) and Sudanese Army general Abdel Fattah Abdelrahman al-Burhan (L) pose for a photo during their meeting at the Presidential Palace in Ankara, Türkiye, 13 September 2023. (EPA/ Turkish President Press Office Handout)
A handout photo made available by the Turkish President Press Office shows Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (R) and Sudanese Army general Abdel Fattah Abdelrahman al-Burhan (L) pose for a photo during their meeting at the Presidential Palace in Ankara, Türkiye, 13 September 2023. (EPA/ Turkish President Press Office Handout)
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Burhan, Erdogan Discuss Boosting Cooperation Between Sudan, Türkiye

A handout photo made available by the Turkish President Press Office shows Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (R) and Sudanese Army general Abdel Fattah Abdelrahman al-Burhan (L) pose for a photo during their meeting at the Presidential Palace in Ankara, Türkiye, 13 September 2023. (EPA/ Turkish President Press Office Handout)
A handout photo made available by the Turkish President Press Office shows Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (R) and Sudanese Army general Abdel Fattah Abdelrahman al-Burhan (L) pose for a photo during their meeting at the Presidential Palace in Ankara, Türkiye, 13 September 2023. (EPA/ Turkish President Press Office Handout)

Head of Sudan’s ruling Sovereign Council and army chief Gen. Abdel Fattah al-Burhan held on Wednesday bilateral talks and discussed ways to boost cooperation with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan at the presidential palace in Ankara.

Burhan arrived in Ankara on an official visit, accompanied by a delegation composed of Foreign Minister-designate Ali al-Sadiq, intelligence chief Lt. Gen. Ahmed Ibrahim Mufaddal, and Director General of the Defense Industries Corporation Lt. Gen. Mirghani Idris Suleiman.

Separately, Sudanese military air raids on Nyala killed at least 40 civilians and wounded roughly 60, according to a medical source. Eyewitnesses reported that this coincided with the Sudanese army conducting overflights.

Fighting flared again on Tuesday in Nyala between the military and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF). They exchanged artillery bombardment and clashed with heavy weapons in the vicinity of a military area.

The Nyala Emergency Room Initiative said on Facebook that the raids on the Almalaja market and other areas led to casualties among civilians. The tally could not be carried out due to heavy clashes between the military and the RSF.

Witnesses reported the death of at least eight people, adding that the RSF was not deployed in the targeted areas.

The East Nile Emergency Room in Khartoum said that 45 people were killed and 120 injured in the raids and drone attacks that targeted areas in El- Haj Yousif, El Wihda, and Dar es Salaam in the past two days.

In a Facebook post, it stressed that these are "preliminary" figures.

Meanwhile, residents revealed that army drones launched strikes on the RSF locations in the East Nile areas and towns in Nasir Extension in east Khartoum.

Eyewitnesses reported that they heard an exchange of artillery bombardment and fierce clashes between the army and the RSF in Omdurman.

Local sources added that the RSF attacked the ammunition camp near the Armored Corps Command in Al Shajara, southern Sudan.

The RSF revealed in a statement that the attacks launched by the army in Khartoum, Omdurman, and Bahri killed more than 104 people and wounded hundreds on Monday and Tuesday.



Lebanon’s War Losses Double Compared to 2006

Rescuers and aid workers search for survivors at the site of an Israeli airstrike in eastern Lebanon (AFP)
Rescuers and aid workers search for survivors at the site of an Israeli airstrike in eastern Lebanon (AFP)
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Lebanon’s War Losses Double Compared to 2006

Rescuers and aid workers search for survivors at the site of an Israeli airstrike in eastern Lebanon (AFP)
Rescuers and aid workers search for survivors at the site of an Israeli airstrike in eastern Lebanon (AFP)

A comparison of the current human and material losses from the ongoing Hezbollah-Israel conflict with those from the July 2006 war shows that current losses have doubled.

Experts warn that the reconstruction funds and aid pledged to Lebanon 18 years ago may have limited impact once the war ends.

Total Losses

Mohammad Shamseddine, a researcher from Information International, told Asharq Al-Awsat that the death toll has risen from 900 in 2006 to 2,865 in the current conflict (as of October 31, 2024), with the number increasing daily. The number of wounded was 4,000 in 2006, but it has now exceeded 13,047.

In 2006, 600,000 people were displaced, while today that number has surpassed 1.2 million. Of these, 189,174 are in shelters. A total of 358,133 Syrians and 172,604 Lebanese have fled to Syria, and 120,000 have sought refuge in other countries.

Lebanese Economy and Trade Minister Amin Salam estimated that Lebanon’s total economic losses from the current conflict have reached $20 billion. However, economic associations report direct losses between $10 billion and $12 billion, covering damage to key sectors, homes, buildings, and infrastructure.

These figures align with estimates from Shamseddine, who believes direct and indirect losses are around $10 billion.

Of this, $4 billion occurred from October 8, 2023, to September 17, 2024 (when the conflict was mostly limited to the south), and $7 billion from September 17 to October 31, 2024, after Israel expanded the war. For comparison, losses during the 2006 war totaled $5.3 billion.

In 2006, infrastructure damage was valued at $900 million, higher than the current war's $570 million in infrastructure losses.

Housing losses in 2006 totaled $2.2 billion, while they have now surpassed $4.26 billion. Mohammad Shamseddine points out that commercial losses were similar in both conflicts, at $4.7 million.

Agricultural and environmental losses in 2006 were $450 million, but now exceed $900 million. Indirect economic damages were $1.2 billion in 2006, while they have now surpassed $3.38 billion.

One notable difference is the number of airstrikes: from October 8, 2023, to October 31, 2024, there were 11,647, compared to just 3,670 during the 33-day 2006 war.