US Treasury: Removing Sudan from Terror List a Matter of Time

Assistant Secretary for Terrorist Financing in the US Department of the Treasury Marshall Billingslea speaks during a news conference in Riga, Latvia May 16, 2019. REUTERS/Ints Kalnins
Assistant Secretary for Terrorist Financing in the US Department of the Treasury Marshall Billingslea speaks during a news conference in Riga, Latvia May 16, 2019. REUTERS/Ints Kalnins
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US Treasury: Removing Sudan from Terror List a Matter of Time

Assistant Secretary for Terrorist Financing in the US Department of the Treasury Marshall Billingslea speaks during a news conference in Riga, Latvia May 16, 2019. REUTERS/Ints Kalnins
Assistant Secretary for Terrorist Financing in the US Department of the Treasury Marshall Billingslea speaks during a news conference in Riga, Latvia May 16, 2019. REUTERS/Ints Kalnins

The US Treasury Department has said that removing Sudan from a list of state sponsors of terrorism is only a matter of time, a statement from Sudanese Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok’s office said Sunday.

Hamdok held talks with a delegation from the US Treasury in Khartoum.

The statement said the PM stressed that the US is a strategic partner, and reiterated the keenness of Sudan’s transitional authorities to achieve comprehensive peace and improve the country’s economic situation.

Marshall Billingslea, the US Treasury’s Assistant Secretary for Terrorist Financing, told Hamdok that removing Sudan from the terrorism list is a matter of time, said the statement.

Sudanese Foreign Minister Asma Abdalla also urged the US delegation to remove Sudan from the list to enable it to deal with funding institutions and help it make financial transfers.

The Treasury delegation's visit came as foreign affairs committee leaders at the US Congress introduced legislation to support Sudan’s democratic transition.

Representatives Eliot L. Engel, Chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee; Michael McCaul, the Committee’s Ranking Member; Karen Bass, Chairperson of the Subcommittee on Africa, Global Health, Global Human Rights and International Organizations; and Chris Smith, the Subcommittee’s Ranking Member, introduced legislation to help foster a successful democratic transition in Sudan.

The Sudan Democratic Transition, Accountability, and Financial Transparency Act of 2020 (H.R.6094) would support a civilian-led democratic transition, promote accountability for human-rights abuses, and encourage fiscal transparency in Sudan.



Red Sea Marine Traffic Up 60% after Houthis Narrowed Targets

Armed men stand on the beach as the Galaxy Leader commercial ship, seized by Yemen's Houthis last month, is anchored off the coast of al-Salif, Yemen, December 5, 2023. (Reuters)
Armed men stand on the beach as the Galaxy Leader commercial ship, seized by Yemen's Houthis last month, is anchored off the coast of al-Salif, Yemen, December 5, 2023. (Reuters)
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Red Sea Marine Traffic Up 60% after Houthis Narrowed Targets

Armed men stand on the beach as the Galaxy Leader commercial ship, seized by Yemen's Houthis last month, is anchored off the coast of al-Salif, Yemen, December 5, 2023. (Reuters)
Armed men stand on the beach as the Galaxy Leader commercial ship, seized by Yemen's Houthis last month, is anchored off the coast of al-Salif, Yemen, December 5, 2023. (Reuters)

Red Sea marine traffic has increased by 60% to 36-37 ships a day since August 2024, but is still short of volumes seen before Yemen's Houthis began attacking ships in the region, according to the commander of the EU's Aspides naval mission.

The number of merchant ships using the narrow Bab al-Mandab strait increased after missile and drone attacks by the Houthis slowed and the US and the extremist group signed a ceasefire deal, Rear Admiral Vasileios Gryparis said in an interview in Madrid.

But shipping traffic, which reached a low of 20-23 ships daily in August last year, is still short of an average of 72-75 ships a day seen before the Houthis began attacks in the Red Sea in November in 2023 in support of Palestinians over Israel's war in Gaza, said Gryparis according to Reuters.

The mission, which was established to safeguard navigation in the strategic trade route linking the Mediterranean with the Gulf of Asia through the Suez Canal, was extended in February when it was also tasked with tracking illegal arms shipments and monitoring vessels carrying sanctioned Russian oil.

The last attack on a merchant ship took place in November 2024 and the Houthis have also narrowed their objectives, saying their targets are Israeli ships and ships that have a connection with Israel or have docked at an Israeli port, Gryparis said.

"If you have a vessel that does not correspond to this criteria... there is a huge possibility - more than 99% - that you're not going to be targeted by the Houthis," Gryparis said.

Still, Gryparis said he could not guarantee that merchant ships won't be attacked.

Some companies have been deterred from using the route because of the mission's lack of ships, which can cause delays of as much as a week for those seeking to be escorted through the area, he said.

He said the mission has between two and three ships operating at one time and has requested the EU provide it with 10 ships to increase its capacity for protection.

The mission has provided close protection to 476 ships, shot down 18 drones, destroyed two remote-controlled boats used to attack ships and intercepted four ballistic missiles, he said.