Sudan: Figures of Bashir’s Regime Challenge Law to Dissolve National Congress Party

Sudanese protesters calling for toppling the regime of former President Omar al-Bashir (File photo: AFP)
Sudanese protesters calling for toppling the regime of former President Omar al-Bashir (File photo: AFP)
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Sudan: Figures of Bashir’s Regime Challenge Law to Dissolve National Congress Party

Sudanese protesters calling for toppling the regime of former President Omar al-Bashir (File photo: AFP)
Sudanese protesters calling for toppling the regime of former President Omar al-Bashir (File photo: AFP)

Former Foreign Minister and head of the National Congress Party Ibrahim Ghandour challenged the government by defying the law that bans former members of the party from political activity.

Ghandour announced that a law established by a political group will not deter the party members from exercising their rights.

He asserted in a Facebook post: “Our rights are not granted by anyone, and we are fully prepared to pay the price for those rights, be it prison or any other.”

Authorities established a law allowing the imprisonment of members of the former ruling party who are involved in politics.

Sudanese authorities imprisoned ousted president Omar al-Bashir in Kober, along with top figures of his party on charges of military coup, criminal participation in the murder of demonstrators, and financial corruption.

In November, the government issued a law to dismantle the system built by Bashir, confiscating its properties and banning its leadership activities.

Bashir is being investigated for his role in the 1989 coup that brought him to power, as well as the serious violations of human rights during his mandate and the involvement of his most prominent leaders in war crimes, crimes against humanity, and genocide in Darfur.

A top official of the Declaration of Freedom and Change Forces (DFCF), Youssef Seddik, indicated that the revolution broke out against Bashir’s regime, which came to power with a military coup against the country's democratic system.

Seddik recalled how during Bashir’s ruling, restrictions were the worst on freedoms and human rights.

He noted that the National Congress Party was tried under the law "dismantling the rescue system" and banning its political activities.

Based on the law, any member of the party who is proven to have been involved in crimes against the Sudanese people will be prosecuted, according to Seddik.

Despite legal restrictions that prevent the Congress Party from engaging in any political activity, it has been organizing protests calling to overthrow the transitional government. Authorities have not taken any actions against the protesters, so far.

The head of the DFCF Executive Office, Babikir Faisal, explained that according to the constitutional document ruling the transitional period and the law to dismantle the system, the National Congress is an illegal entity and should not be allowed to engage in political action.

Faisal indicated that authorities have failed to arrest all figures of the former regime, and those who speak for the dissolved party. He added that the Public Prosecutor should have applied the law to anyone who breaks it, as was the case with Ibrahim Ghandour, who spoke on behalf of the party.

A DFCF top official accused the government of failing to firmly deal with the officials of the former regime and arresting them.

The official, who preferred not to be named, said that the protests toppled the regime over a year ago, and despite that, authorities have not been able to bring figures of the former regime to trial for their crimes.

He noted that the dissolution of the National Congress Party is the most important demand of the Sudanese people that took it to the streets and toppled Bashir’s regime.



US Adding Second Aircraft Carrier in Middle East

A photo released by the US military shows an F/A-18 Super Hornet warplane taking off from the Harry S. Truman aircraft carrier on March 16, 2025 - AFP
A photo released by the US military shows an F/A-18 Super Hornet warplane taking off from the Harry S. Truman aircraft carrier on March 16, 2025 - AFP
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US Adding Second Aircraft Carrier in Middle East

A photo released by the US military shows an F/A-18 Super Hornet warplane taking off from the Harry S. Truman aircraft carrier on March 16, 2025 - AFP
A photo released by the US military shows an F/A-18 Super Hornet warplane taking off from the Harry S. Truman aircraft carrier on March 16, 2025 - AFP

The United States is increasing the number of aircraft carriers deployed in the Middle East to two, keeping one that is already there and sending another from the Indo-Pacific, the Pentagon said Tuesday.

The announcement comes as US forces hammer Yemen's Houthis with near-daily airstrikes in a campaign aimed at ending the threat they pose to civilian shipping and military vessels in the region.

The Carl Vinson will join the Harry S. Truman in the Middle East "to continue promoting regional stability, deter aggression, and protect the free flow of commerce in the region," Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell said in a statement.

"To complement the CENTCOM maritime posture, the secretary also ordered the deployment of additional squadrons and other air assets that will further reinforce our defensive air-support capabilities," Parnell said, referring to the US military command responsible for the region, AFP reported.

"The United States and its partners remain committed to regional security in the CENTCOM (area of responsibility) and are prepared to respond to any state or non-state actor seeking to broaden or escalate conflict in the region," he added.

The Houthis began targeting shipping in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden after the start of the Gaza war in 2023, claiming solidarity with Palestinians.

Houthi attacks have prevented ships from passing through the Suez Canal, a vital route that normally carries about 12 percent of world shipping traffic. Ongoing attacks are forcing many companies into a costly detour around the tip of southern Africa.

- 'Real pain' -

A day before the carrier announcement, US President Donald Trump vowed that strikes on Yemen's Houthis would continue until they are no longer a threat to shipping.

"The choice for the Houthis is clear: Stop shooting at US ships, and we will stop shooting at you. Otherwise, we have only just begun, and the real pain is yet to come, for both the Houthis and their sponsors in Iran," Trump said on his Truth Social platform.

Trump added that the Houthis had been "decimated" by "relentless" strikes since March 15, saying that US forces "hit them every day and night -- Harder and harder."

On Wednesday, the Houthis accused the United States of killing four people in fresh airstrikes on Hodeidah province.

The US president has also ramped up rhetoric towards Tehran, threatening that "there will be bombing" if Iran does not reach a deal on its nuclear program.

Satellite images seen by AFP showed that Washington had between March 26 and Wednesday doubled the number of B-2 bombers at a US-UK military base in the Indian Ocean, from three to six.

The photos from imaging company Planet Labs PBC also showed the presence of six Stratotanker in-flight refuelling aircraft at the Diego Garcia base, within range of Iran.

Trump's threats come as his administration battles a scandal over the accidental leak of a secret group chat by senior security officials on the Yemen strikes.

The Atlantic magazine revealed last week that its editor -- a well-known US journalist -- was inadvertently included in a chat on the commercially available Signal app where top officials were discussing the strikes.

The officials, including Trump's National Security Advisor Mike Waltz and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, discussed details of airstrike timings and intelligence -- unaware that the highly sensitive information was being simultaneously read by a member of the media.