Sudan's Sovereign Council Visits Ex-Regime Officials in Kobar Prison

Sudan's former president Omar al-Bashir inside a cage at a courthouse fighting corruption charges, in Khartoum. (Reuters)
Sudan's former president Omar al-Bashir inside a cage at a courthouse fighting corruption charges, in Khartoum. (Reuters)
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Sudan's Sovereign Council Visits Ex-Regime Officials in Kobar Prison

Sudan's former president Omar al-Bashir inside a cage at a courthouse fighting corruption charges, in Khartoum. (Reuters)
Sudan's former president Omar al-Bashir inside a cage at a courthouse fighting corruption charges, in Khartoum. (Reuters)

Sudan's joint sovereign council, headed by Aisha Mousa, paid a visit to former regime figures held in Kobar Prison, north of the capital Khartoum. Among the prisoners visited was deposed president Omar al-Bashir.

Mousa, speaking to Asharq Al-Awsat, said that the visit was intended to dispel doubts on whether the ex-regime elites were indeed imprisoned. She noted that the delegation met with Bashir in private.

According to official statements, 23 of the former regime's top figures are imprisoned.

The visit followed a formal request made by Mousa to verify their presence in jail and provide them with fair trials.

Separately, insider sources predicted that ministers of the transitional government will be named in the coming few days.

A source at the sovereign council, who requested anonymity, revealed that consultations on the future cabinet members have been completed.

They added that a list submitted by the opposition Freedom and Change Alliance (FCA) to the Transitional Military Council (TMC) was approved with no candidates being dropped.

Meanwhile, a meeting brought FCA officials together with Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok to polish the portfolios of the new ministries.

Hamdok's planned government is expected to be composed of 19 ministries, rather than 14, and five higher councils‏.

The new cabinet was expected to be unveiled on Saturday and sworn in on September 1, but several difficulties, such as FCA inner differences, obstructed politicians from making the deadline.

FCA differences first delayed the selection of a handful of candidates and the process was then further stretched by the TMC's demand to be consulted on the matter.



Egypt, Greece Agree to Boost Ties, Back Gaza Reconstruction Plan 

Greece's Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis (R) and the Egypt's President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi shake hands after signing a memorandum of cooperation in Athens on May 7, 2025. (AFP) 
Greece's Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis (R) and the Egypt's President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi shake hands after signing a memorandum of cooperation in Athens on May 7, 2025. (AFP) 
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Egypt, Greece Agree to Boost Ties, Back Gaza Reconstruction Plan 

Greece's Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis (R) and the Egypt's President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi shake hands after signing a memorandum of cooperation in Athens on May 7, 2025. (AFP) 
Greece's Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis (R) and the Egypt's President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi shake hands after signing a memorandum of cooperation in Athens on May 7, 2025. (AFP) 

Greece and Egypt signed a "strategic partnership" deal on Wednesday as they seek to step up political coordination to help safeguard stability in the Eastern Mediterranean amid the ongoing war in Gaza.

"Our bilateral cooperation is based on political, economic, and cultural ties, which are deeply rooted in history and defined by our strong commitment to the values of peace and the full respect of international law," Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi and Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis said in a joint statement.

The two officials met during the first meeting of the Supreme Cooperation Council, a body they agreed to set up more than a year ago to improve ties.

The two leaders reaffirmed their joint stance over the need to respect international law to promote peace in Gaza.

"The first priority is for hostilities to stop and restore the flow of humanitarian aid to civilians," Mitsotakis said in joint statements with Sisi. He said Greece supported an Arab-backed plan for the reconstruction of Gaza once a ceasefire was achieved.

Migration also topped the agenda of bilateral talks as European governments have long been worried about the risk of instability in Egypt, a country of 106 million people where economic adversity has pushed increasing numbers to migrate.

Egypt largely shut off irregular migration from its north coast in 2016, but the Greek islands of Crete and Gavdos have seen a steep rise in migrant arrivals, mostly from Afghanistan and Egypt.

The European Union last year announced a 7.4 billion euro ($8.40 billion) funding package and an upgraded relationship with Egypt, in part of a push to stem migrant flows from Egypt to Europe. Last month, the EU's executive arm included Egypt on a list of "safe countries" where failed asylum seekers could be returned.