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Sudan: Expectations of Deal with Armed Movements, New Structure for Alliance of Change

Sudanese protesters shout slogans and wave flags during a rally honoring fallen protesters at the Green Square in Khartoum, Sudan July 18, 2019. (Reuters)
Sudanese protesters shout slogans and wave flags during a rally honoring fallen protesters at the Green Square in Khartoum, Sudan July 18, 2019. (Reuters)
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Sudan: Expectations of Deal with Armed Movements, New Structure for Alliance of Change

Sudanese protesters shout slogans and wave flags during a rally honoring fallen protesters at the Green Square in Khartoum, Sudan July 18, 2019. (Reuters)
Sudanese protesters shout slogans and wave flags during a rally honoring fallen protesters at the Green Square in Khartoum, Sudan July 18, 2019. (Reuters)

Sudan’s Declaration of Freedom and Change activists and armed movements meeting in Addis Ababa are expected to sign a draft joint agreement specifying the details of the transitional period and overcoming the complex issue of the representation in both ministerial and sovereignty councils.
 
Since last week, intensive discussions are being held in the Ethiopian capital between the Declaration of Freedom and Change and the armed movements - known as the “Revolutionary Front” - to discuss arrangements for achieving peace during the transitional period.
 
Sources told Asharq Al-Awsat that Freedom and Change members agreed on a “proposal to structure the Coalition institutions”, to form a leadership body and a federal and state regulatory structure that ensures coordination and management of political work during the transitional period.
 
According to the sources, the parties have reached an agreement to allocate “six seats for the Revolutionary Front, five seats for Nidaa al-Sudan, five for the National Consensus forces, five for the Professionals’ Gathering, two for the opposition federal gathering, two for the civil factions and two for the displaced and refugees.”
 
A spokesman for the Revolutionary Front, Mohamed Zakaria, told Asharq Al-Awsat that the consultations held in Addis Ababa last week were not related to the allocation of quotas and the distribution of positions during the transitional government, but stressed that meetings discussed the structure of the transitional period.
 
“We have discussed peace and the final cessation of war… to achieve a democratic civil transition,” he emphasized.
 
Meanwhile, hundreds of students demonstrated in downtown Khartoum on Tuesday, demanding a civilian rule and accountability for the deaths of their colleagues during the months of political turmoil.

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Yemeni Forces Raid Migrant Smuggling Sites

Authorities raid smuggling hubs after the death of 92 illegal migrants. (Government media)
Authorities raid smuggling hubs after the death of 92 illegal migrants. (Government media)
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Yemeni Forces Raid Migrant Smuggling Sites

Authorities raid smuggling hubs after the death of 92 illegal migrants. (Government media)
Authorities raid smuggling hubs after the death of 92 illegal migrants. (Government media)

Dozens of African migrants escaped death off Yemen’s southern coast when their boat broke down at sea, as government forces raided smuggling sites in Abyan province a day after another shipwreck killed 92 people.

Government sources said Yemeni fishermen rescued 250 migrants from the Horn of Africa, nearly half of them women and most of them Ethiopian, after their vessel was stranded for several days in the Gulf of Aden without food or water. Seven people died before the survivors reached Shabwa province, east of Aden.

Authorities provided first aid to the migrants on arrival in Rudum district, which has become a key landing point after tighter patrols along the western Lahj coast, said the sources.

The International Organization for Migration (IOM) said the group endured a week-long voyage from Somalia after their boat’s engine failed 100 nautical miles from shore. The trip, meant to last 24 hours, stretched to seven days, relying on wind and paddling.

“These people went through a week of hell at sea, facing exploitation, fear and trauma,” said Abdusattor Esoev, IOM’s head of mission in Yemen. He urged greater humanitarian action to save lives, step up search and rescue, tackle the drivers of irregular migration and protect vulnerable travelers.

The rescue came as Abyan’s security forces said they raided several coastal sites used by smugglers to shelter incoming migrants, following last week’s disaster off the province’s coast in which 92 people drowned and 23 were saved from a boat carrying about 200 passengers. The rest remain missing.

The operation targeted areas in Shaqra port, including Tamhan, al-Kasara and al-Hajla, as well as a site on Ahwar’s coast, under the supervision of provincial police chief Ali Nasser Bouzeid. He called for regional and international coordination to curb what he described as a security and humanitarian threat.

Bouzeid warned against aiding smugglers, saying several armed men had already been arrested for protecting migrant compounds.

In the Lawdar district, security forces said they detained a “dangerous gang” involved in smuggling African migrants after a firefight in which the suspects threw grenades at police before being captured. Three vehicles were seized, and the detainees will face legal action, the statement added.

The IOM said the latest shipwreck highlights the urgent need to address the dangers along the eastern migration route linking the Horn of Africa to Yemen. It called for prioritizing life-saving aid, expanding safe migration channels and improving coordinated search and rescue.

The agency praised Abyan authorities’ quick response and pledged to support joint efforts to identify survivors, recover bodies and assist affected families.

More than 350 migrants have died or gone missing along the eastern route since the start of the year, the IOM said, warning the real toll is likely far higher.

Every life lost is a stark reminder of the human cost of irregular migration, the agency said, renewing calls for stronger protection systems, effective rescue operations and accountability for smugglers and traffickers.