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Germany Reduces Military Personnel in Kurdistan

German defense minister Ursula von der Leyen. (Reuters)
German defense minister Ursula von der Leyen. (Reuters)
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Germany Reduces Military Personnel in Kurdistan

German defense minister Ursula von der Leyen. (Reuters)
German defense minister Ursula von der Leyen. (Reuters)

Germany is planning to reduce the number of its military personnel and advisors in Kurdistan by 50, announced Germany's defense minister Ursula von der Leyen.

Von der Leyen met with officials from the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG), including Interior Minister and acting Peshmerga Minister Karim Sinjari, in Erbil on Monday.

"All in all ... we had over the last mandate we had 150, now we will more focus on the specialists, so we will go down to a number that is below 100,” von der Leyen told reporters in a joint press conference.

The German minister visited the region in February, and said that the end of the war against ISIS in Iraq does not mean the achievement of full stability in the region.

Von der Leyen pointed out that the mission will change, noting the first phase was the acute fight against ISIS.

"We were deeply impressed with what the Peshmerga were able to do... Now, it is the time to establish sustainable structures in the ministry of defense with the Peshmerga,” she added.

Germany was among the first countries that provided important military and logistical assistance to the Peshmerga forces since the beginning of its war against ISIS. It also supplied the forces with weapons that helped them during the war. Total military assistance provided by other European countries to Peshmerga reached about $65 million.

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Hemedti Issues Strict Orders to his Forces to Protect Sudanese People

People collect clean water provided by a charity organization to people in Gedaref in eastern Sudan on August 30, 2024. (AFP)
People collect clean water provided by a charity organization to people in Gedaref in eastern Sudan on August 30, 2024. (AFP)
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Hemedti Issues Strict Orders to his Forces to Protect Sudanese People

People collect clean water provided by a charity organization to people in Gedaref in eastern Sudan on August 30, 2024. (AFP)
People collect clean water provided by a charity organization to people in Gedaref in eastern Sudan on August 30, 2024. (AFP)

Commander of Sudan’s Rapid Support Forces (RSF) Mohammed Hamdan Daglo, also known as Hemedti, issued on Saturday strict orders to his forces to protect civilians and ensure the delivery of humanitarian aid in line with the commitments his delegation made at the recent peace talks in Geneva.

In a post on the X platform, he said he issued an “extraordinary administrative order to all the forces” to protect civilians and facilitate the delivery of humanitarian aid.

He called on all commanders to abide by the orders in line with international humanitarian law. Any violators will be held accountable.

The RSF has been accused of widespread violations against civilians in areas under their control. They have also been accused of committing massacres in Gezira state in central Sudan. The RSF have denied the accusations.

Hemedti announced in August the formation of a “civilian protection force” that immediately assumed its duties in the Khartoum and Gezira states.

According to head of the RSF delegation to the Geneva talks, Omar Hamdan, the force is formed of 27 combat vehicles, backed by forces that have experience in cracking down on insubordination.

Hemedti stressed last week his commitment to all the outcomes of the Geneva talks, starting with ensuring the delivery of aid to those in need.

The RSF and army agreed to open two safe routes for the deliveries and to protect civilians to ease their suffering after nearly a year and a half of war.

The mediators in Geneva received commitments from the RSF that it would order the fighters against committing any violations against civilians in areas under their control.

Meanwhile, aid deliveries continued through the Adre border crossing with Chad. They are headed to people in Darfur in western Sudan.

Fifty-nine aid trucks carrying aid supplies crossed from Chad to Darfur, said the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs on Saturday.

“The supplies are estimated to reach nearly 195,000 people in acute need in different parts of the country,” it added.

“About 128 aid trucks carrying supplies for an estimated 355,000 people are being prepared to cross into Sudan in the coming days and weeks to ensure a steady flow of supplies. Despite the surge of supplies through Adre, humanitarian partners have warned that ongoing rains and floods have damaged three major bridges in the region, limiting movements within Darfur,” it revealed.

“While progress has been made on the Adre border crossing, funding resources are depleting, and humanitarian funding is urgently required to sustain the supplies chain,” it urged.