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Al-Sudani: We Succeeded in Steering Iraq away from War, Fire Belt

Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani
Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani
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Al-Sudani: We Succeeded in Steering Iraq away from War, Fire Belt

Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani
Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani

Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani firmly addressed on Sunday recent reports about a possible change in Iraq’s political system or an Israeli strike against armed factions in the country.
At a ceremony held in Baghdad to mark the fifth anniversary of the assassination of Iranian General Qassem Soleimani and his Iraqi comrade, Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis, the PM affirmed Iraq’s full readiness to respond and deter any attack, regardless of its source.
During the ceremony, attended by Asharq Al-Awsat, al-Sudani said the government was able to spare Iraq from being part of the conflict zone that was intended to expand beyond the borders of Gaza and Lebanon.
On Saturday, the PM had dismissed calls for changing the political system in the country in wake of the radical changes in Syria with the ouster of Bashar al-Assad's regime.
Speaking at a ceremony commemorating the death of former head of the Supreme Iraqi Council Mohammed Baqer al-Hakim in 2003, Sudani stressed that Iraq had sought to distance itself from the developments in Syria.
“Some parties are using the situation in Syria to attempt to change the system of rule in Iraq. This issue is not up for debate,” he declared, while acknowledging that the region had witnessed in over a year major developments that have resulted in significant political changes.
At the ceremony on Sunday, parliament Speaker Dr. Mahmoud al-Mashhadani called on important countries in the region such as Türkiye, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Iran and Jordan, to take a stand regarding the Israeli military advances in Syria following the overthrow of Bashar al-Assad's regime.
Meanwhile, al-Sudani is scheduled to pay an official visit to Iran on Wednesday, his office said in a statement.
“The official visit will include discussions on bilateral relations between the two countries and ways to strengthen them, building on the progress made during the visit of Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian to Baghdad in September of last year, as well as addressing the latest regional developments,” the statement said.
The visit comes amid reports of a possible Israeli strike against Iran-backed armed factions in Iraq.
Ammar al-Hakim, leader of the National Wisdom Movement, revealed last week that a message was delivered to Baghdad confirming that certain Iraqi armed factions would be among Israel’s targets.

 

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US Determines Sudan's RSF Committed Genocide, Imposes Sanctions on Leader

Sudan's paramilitary Rapid Support Forces commander, General Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, attends a meeting of representatives of the tripartite mechanism in the Sudanese capital Khartoum on June 8, 2022. (AFP)
Sudan's paramilitary Rapid Support Forces commander, General Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, attends a meeting of representatives of the tripartite mechanism in the Sudanese capital Khartoum on June 8, 2022. (AFP)
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US Determines Sudan's RSF Committed Genocide, Imposes Sanctions on Leader

Sudan's paramilitary Rapid Support Forces commander, General Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, attends a meeting of representatives of the tripartite mechanism in the Sudanese capital Khartoum on June 8, 2022. (AFP)
Sudan's paramilitary Rapid Support Forces commander, General Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, attends a meeting of representatives of the tripartite mechanism in the Sudanese capital Khartoum on June 8, 2022. (AFP)

The United States determined on Tuesday that members of Sudan's Rapid Support Forces (RSF) and allied militias committed genocide in Sudan and it imposed sanctions on the group's leader over a conflict that has killed tens of thousands of people and driven millions from their homes.

The moves deal a blow to the RSF's attempts to burnish its image and assert legitimacy - including by installing a civilian government- as the paramilitary group seeks to expand its territory beyond the roughly half of the country it currently controls.

The RSF rejected the measures.

"America previously punished the great African freedom fighter Nelson Mandela, which was wrong. Today, it is rewarding those who started the war by punishing (RSF leader) General Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, which is also wrong," said an RSF spokesman when reached for comment.

The war in Sudan has produced waves of ethnically driven violence blamed largely on the RSF. It has also carried out mass looting campaigns across swathes of the country, arbitrarily killing and sexually assaulting civilians in the process.

The RSF denies harming civilians and attributes the activity to rogue actors it says it is trying to control.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in a statement the RSF and aligned militias had continued to direct attacks against civilians, adding they had systematically murdered men and boys on an ethnic basis and had deliberately targeted women and girls from certain ethnic groups for rape and other forms of sexual violence.

The militias have also targeted fleeing civilians and murdered innocent people escaping conflict, Blinken said.

"The United States is committed to holding accountable those responsible for these atrocities," Blinken said.

Washington announced sanctions on the leader of the RSF, Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, barring him and his family from travelling to the US and freezing any US assets he might hold. Financial institutions and others that engage in certain activity with him also risk being hit with sanctions themselves.

It had previously sanctioned other leaders, as well as army officials, but had not sanctioned Dagalo, known as Hemedti, as attempts to bring the two sides to talks continued.

Such attempts have stalled in recent months.

"As the overall commander of the RSF, Hemedti bears command responsibility for the abhorrent and illegal actions of his forces," the Treasury said.

Sudan's army and RSF have been fighting for almost two years, creating a humanitarian crisis in which UN agencies struggle to deliver relief. More than half of Sudan's population faces hunger, and famine has been declared in several areas.

The war erupted in April 2023 amid a power struggle between the army and RSF ahead of a planned transition to civilian rule.

Blinken said in the statement that "both belligerents bear responsibility for the violence and suffering in Sudan and lack the legitimacy to govern a future peaceful Sudan."

The US has sanctioned army leaders as well as individuals and entities linked to financing its weapons procurement. Last year, Blinken accused the RSF and the army, which has carried out numerous indiscriminate air strikes, of war crimes.