Sudan Deploys Additional Forces to Enhance Security in Conflict Areas

 Archival photo of displaced people near El Fasher city in South Darfur state (AFP)
Archival photo of displaced people near El Fasher city in South Darfur state (AFP)
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Sudan Deploys Additional Forces to Enhance Security in Conflict Areas

 Archival photo of displaced people near El Fasher city in South Darfur state (AFP)
Archival photo of displaced people near El Fasher city in South Darfur state (AFP)

Sudan’s Security and Defense Council announced taking measures to face the current security situation, in light of tribal conflicts in some areas, which have left dozens dead and wounded.

The Security Council, chaired by President of the Sudanese Sovereign Council Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, listened to detailed reports from the police, military intelligence, and the General Intelligence Service on the security situation in the country.

It mainly focused on the cities of El-Geneina, Nyala, Port Sudan, and the capital, Khartoum.

A senior source told Asharq Al-Awsat that the Council has taken several decisions, including the deployment of additional forces in some areas and boosting the police presence on the roads.

The Council also ordered the formation of an investigation committee from the central government in the attacks on the United Nations–African Union Mission in Darfur (UNAMID) headquarters in Nyala, the capital of South Darfur state, the source noted.

He pointed to orders issued to the leaders of the security services to submit detailed reports on the security situation in all parts of the country during the upcoming meeting of the Security and Defense Council.

Meanwhile, UNAMID reported new statistics for the numbers of dead and injured in the incidents that had taken place in El Geneina city last week.

It said it is deeply concerned about reports of intercommunal violence in West Darfur that left 65 people dead and approximately 54 injured, displaced thousands of civilian population, destroyed shelters and burnt villages.

“UNAMID condemns the violence and stresses the importance of resolving all disputes peacefully and amicably and calls on all parties to restrain from the use of force, especially against the civilian population, including women and children,” it said in a statement.

It highlighted the egregious intercommunal clashes that have deteriorated the security and humanitarian situation in El Geneina and the surrounding area.

It also acknowledged the efforts exerted by the Government to contain the situation and called upon relevant government authorities to maximize their efforts to establish a protective environment and restore peace and order in and around the greater El Geneina community.



Iraq Holds Kurdish Government Legally Responsible for Continued Oil Smuggling

Kurdish protesters block the road in front of trucks carrying oil in the Arbat area near Sulaymaniyah, Iraq February 23, 2025. REUTERS/Ako Rasheed/File Photo
Kurdish protesters block the road in front of trucks carrying oil in the Arbat area near Sulaymaniyah, Iraq February 23, 2025. REUTERS/Ako Rasheed/File Photo
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Iraq Holds Kurdish Government Legally Responsible for Continued Oil Smuggling

Kurdish protesters block the road in front of trucks carrying oil in the Arbat area near Sulaymaniyah, Iraq February 23, 2025. REUTERS/Ako Rasheed/File Photo
Kurdish protesters block the road in front of trucks carrying oil in the Arbat area near Sulaymaniyah, Iraq February 23, 2025. REUTERS/Ako Rasheed/File Photo

Iraq's oil ministry said on Thursday it holds the Kurdish regional government (KRG) legally responsible for the continued smuggling of oil from the Kurdish region outside the country.

The ministry reserves the right to take all legal measures in the matter, it added.

Control over oil and gas has long been a source of tension between Baghdad and Erbil, Reuters reported.

Iraq is under pressure from the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries to cut output to compensate for having produced more than its agreed volume. OPEC counts oil flows from Kurdistan as part of Iraq's quota.

In a ruling issued in 2022, Iraq's federal court deemed an oil and gas law regulating the oil industry in Iraqi Kurdistan unconstitutional and demanded that Kurdish authorities hand over their crude oil supplies.

The ministry said the KRG’s failure to comply with the law has hurt both oil exports and public revenue, forcing Baghdad to cut output from other fields to meet OPEC quotas.

The ministry added that it had urged the KRG to hand over crude produced from its fields, warning that failure to do so could result in significant financial losses and harm the country’s international reputation and oil commitments.

Negotiations to resume Kurdish oil exports via the Iraq-Türkiye oil pipeline, which once handled about 0.5% of global oil supply, have stalled over payment terms and contract details.