Sudan: National Congress Party Condemns Authorities' Move to Dissolve It

Thousands of Sudanese rallied late last month in several cities, urging the new authorities to dissolve the former ruling party. AFP
Thousands of Sudanese rallied late last month in several cities, urging the new authorities to dissolve the former ruling party. AFP
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Sudan: National Congress Party Condemns Authorities' Move to Dissolve It

Thousands of Sudanese rallied late last month in several cities, urging the new authorities to dissolve the former ruling party. AFP
Thousands of Sudanese rallied late last month in several cities, urging the new authorities to dissolve the former ruling party. AFP

Ousted President Omar al-Bashir's party on Friday condemned what it described as new "illegal government" for ordering its closure and the dismantling of the regime.

The National Congress Party accused the authorities of trying to confiscate NCP properties to help tackle Sudan's economic crisis, which it said the new government had failed to tackle.

"To rely on the assets of the party, if there are any, is nothing more than a moral scandal, an act of intellectual bankruptcy and a total failure on the part of the illegal government," the Islamist NCP said on its Facebook page.

Sudan's new authorities ordered earlier on Thursday that the party of Bashir be dissolved and his regime be "dismantled", heeding the call of protesters whose campaign led to the leader's overthrow.

Bashir and his party had ruled the northeast African country since 1989 before a nationwide protest movement resulted in him being deposed earlier this year.

The country's new ruling sovereign council and the cabinet led by Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok made the decision to dissolve the party, approving a law titled "Dismantling of the regime of 30th June 1989," AFP reported.

"The National Congress Party is dissolved and its registration is cancelled from the list of political parties in Sudan," the decree said, adding that a committee would be formed to confiscate all its properties and assets.

"None of the symbols of the regime or party would be allowed to engage in any political activity for 10 years".

The dissolution of the party was "not a revenge" against the country's former rulers, Hamdok wrote on Twitter.

"But it aims to preserve the dignity of Sudanese people which was crushed by dishonest people."

"This law aims to recover the plundered wealth of the people."

Wajdi Salah, a spokesman of the umbrella protest movement Forces of Freedom and Change, said on his Facebook page that the old regime party would be dismantled completely.

The Sudanese Professionals Association, the protest group that had initially led the demonstrations against Bashir, praised the decision to dismantle the former regime.

"It is a major step towards achieving the goal of the revolution and on the path of building a democratic civilian state," the SPA said in a statement.

Thousands of Sudanese rallied late last month in several cities, urging the new authorities to dissolve the former ruling party.

According to AFP, Bashir is being held in a prison in Khartoum facing trial on charges of corruption.

Several other officials of his government and senior party members are also in jail.



UN Calls for 'Immediate Deescalation' in Libyan Capital

Man waving the Libyan flag - File Photo/AFP
Man waving the Libyan flag - File Photo/AFP
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UN Calls for 'Immediate Deescalation' in Libyan Capital

Man waving the Libyan flag - File Photo/AFP
Man waving the Libyan flag - File Photo/AFP

The UN mission in Libya called for "immediate deescalation", citing reports of armed forces being mobilized in the capital and its surroundings that have raised fears of renewed violence.

In mid-May, there were clashes in Tripoli between forces loyal to the government and powerful armed groups wanting to dismantle it.

In a statement published late on Wednesday on X, the UN Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL) said there were "increased reports of continued military build-up in and around Tripoli", AFP reported.

It said it "strongly urges all parties to refrain from using force, particularly in densely populated areas, and to avoid any actions or political rhetoric that could trigger escalation or lead to renewed clashes".

It called for all parties to "engage in good faith" in deescalation and for the "swift implementation of security arrangements" set out during efforts to end the May violence.

Those clashes left six people dead, the United Nations said.

"Forces recently deployed in Tripoli must withdraw without delay," UNSMIL said.

Libya has been gripped by conflict since the 2011 overthrow and killing of longtime ruler Moamer Kadhafi in a NATO-backed uprising.

The country remains split between Prime Minister Abdelhamid Dbeibah's UN-recognized government based in Tripoli and a rival administration based in the east.

In a TV interview on Monday, Dbeibah called for armed groups to vacate the areas under their control.

Among the sites held by armed factions are the Mitiga airport in the east of the capital, which is controlled by the powerful Radaa Force.

"Dialogue -- not violence -- remains the only viable path toward achieving lasting peace, stability in Tripoli and across Libya", the UNSMIL statement said.