Hamdok: No Red Lines in Sudanese Peace Negotiations

Sudan’s Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok (Reuters)
Sudan’s Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok (Reuters)
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Hamdok: No Red Lines in Sudanese Peace Negotiations

Sudan’s Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok (Reuters)
Sudan’s Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok (Reuters)

Sudanese Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok has affirmed that no red lines should be set in the country’s peace process. His comments were made a day before talks between the government and Abdelaziz al-Hilu’s Sudan People's Liberation Movement (SPLM-N al-Hilu) were resumed.

The government received an official invitation from the South Sudan mediation team to resume peace talks via videoconference on Tuesday.

Spokesman of the government delegation Mohamed Hassan al-Taishi said the scheduled negotiations are set to tackle three issues.

“These are cessation of hostilities, humanitarian issues and resumption of talks on the Declaration of Principles signed between the two sides in Juba, the capital of South Sudan.”

In a statement on Monday, Taishi noted that the government is ready and keen to continue the dialogue to break the stalemate in negotiations with the SPLM-N.

He stressed that it aims at achieving just and comprehensive peace, which addresses the issues of war and peace in Sudan.

Previous rounds of negotiations were stalled due to the SPLM-N al-Hilu’s adherence to its long-standing position regarding a secular state against the right to self-determination for the Nuba Mountains and Blue Nile regions.

The government delegation had made several proposals to overcome the existing differences over the religion-state relations, but the two parties failed to reach a joint agreement to address the issue.

Hamdok received a letter from the resistance committees, urging the government to speed up with the peace process, as well as many current issues.

It is noteworthy that these committees led to the popular movements to overthrow ousted President Omar al-Bashir’s regime.

They called for mass demonstrations on June 30 to pressure the transitional government to implement the revolution’s goals.

According to a statement by the Premier’s office, the letter expressed the country's immediate need for peace, being the most important issue for achieving social peace through continuous dialogue.

Hamdok urged the resistance committees to refrain from undermining the achievements made by the revolution, pointing out that toppling the isolated regime with all its violence and tyranny was a major and significant step.

He said the letter submitted by the committees include an integrated work program, which comes in line with the revolution’s goals.



Iran Strengthens its Militias in Syria

 A man rides a motorbike past damaged buildings in Homs, Syria November 7, 2024. (Reuters)
A man rides a motorbike past damaged buildings in Homs, Syria November 7, 2024. (Reuters)
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Iran Strengthens its Militias in Syria

 A man rides a motorbike past damaged buildings in Homs, Syria November 7, 2024. (Reuters)
A man rides a motorbike past damaged buildings in Homs, Syria November 7, 2024. (Reuters)

Iran has increased its diplomatic and military efforts in Syria in response to Israeli escalation and threats to cut off the Tehran-Damascus corridor.

This includes strengthening Iranian-backed militias, which have stepped up attacks on US-led coalition bases and the US-supported Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF).

These groups are also fighting ISIS in the Syrian desert.

The UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said on Tuesday that Iran-backed groups launched 89 attacks on US bases in Syria in 2024, using drones and rockets from both Syria and Iraq.

In turn, US forces have upgraded their base defenses, including air defense systems, to intercept drones before they reach their targets.

At the same time, Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) is expanding its training camps for militias, especially the Iraqi Harakat al-Nujaba, in Syria’s southeastern Homs desert.

Reinforcements from the Zainabiyoun and Fatemiyoun brigades, totaling about 225 fighters, recently arrived in the eastern Deir Ezzor province through the al-Hari border crossing. The fighters are stationed in Al-Boukamal and Mayadeen under IRGC command.

Local sources said Iran is working to strengthen its military presence in the region.

On Monday evening, ISIS launched an attack on Iranian-backed militias in the desert near Tadmur, east of Homs.

Syria's Al-Watan newspaper reported that on Monday, government forces and allied troops fought fierce battles with ISIS cells in the eastern Homs desert.

A military source said the clashes killed several ISIS fighters and destroyed their vehicles, which were armed with heavy machine guns.

The militants had attempted to cross from areas controlled by US forces in the 55-kilometer zone to target military positions near the town of al-Taybah in eastern Homs.