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Sudan Cabinet Reshuffle Expected to Calm Angry Protests

Civilians participate in a massive demonstration in Khartoum, Sudan June 30, 2020. REUTERS/Mohamed Nureldin Abdallah
Civilians participate in a massive demonstration in Khartoum, Sudan June 30, 2020. REUTERS/Mohamed Nureldin Abdallah
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Sudan Cabinet Reshuffle Expected to Calm Angry Protests

Civilians participate in a massive demonstration in Khartoum, Sudan June 30, 2020. REUTERS/Mohamed Nureldin Abdallah
Civilians participate in a massive demonstration in Khartoum, Sudan June 30, 2020. REUTERS/Mohamed Nureldin Abdallah

Sudanese Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok is expected to make a cabinet reshuffle to calm angry protesters who have taken to the streets since June 30.

Senior sources in the transitional government told Asharq Al-Awsat that the upcoming changes, which they expected to take place swiftly, would affect political and service ministries.

Speaking on condition of anonymity, the sources said that the cabinet reshuffle would come in response to protester demands, especially calls for improving the government’s performance in dealing with crises.

Hamdok had promised critical measures during the transitional period, which he said would have political, economic and social implications.

Some observers expect the reshuffle to take place after the signing of a peace agreement with the armed struggle movements, noting an important convergence of views between the two sides.

The same sources revealed that the cabinet rejected a request by Finance Minister Ibrahim Al-Badawi to float the Sudanese pound.

Meanwhile, four of the military rulers for the areas of the Red Sea, East Darfur, North and West Darfur, submitted their resignations on Thursday, in protest against repetitive calls by the people to oust them over poor living conditions and deteriorating security.

Those areas are known to be controlled by figures who supported the former Sudanese regime.

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Syrian Returns from Lebanon to Start under UN-backed Plan

FILE PHOTO: A Syrian refugee walks near tents, at an informal settlement, in Al-Marj, in Bekaa, Lebanon April 5, 2023. REUTERS/Emilie Madi/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: A Syrian refugee walks near tents, at an informal settlement, in Al-Marj, in Bekaa, Lebanon April 5, 2023. REUTERS/Emilie Madi/File Photo
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Syrian Returns from Lebanon to Start under UN-backed Plan

FILE PHOTO: A Syrian refugee walks near tents, at an informal settlement, in Al-Marj, in Bekaa, Lebanon April 5, 2023. REUTERS/Emilie Madi/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: A Syrian refugee walks near tents, at an informal settlement, in Al-Marj, in Bekaa, Lebanon April 5, 2023. REUTERS/Emilie Madi/File Photo

Thousands of Syrian refugees are set to return from Lebanon this week under the first, UN-backed plan providing financial incentives, after Syria's new rulers said all citizens were welcome home despite deep war damage and security concerns.

Returning Syrians will be provided with $100 each in Lebanon and $400 per family upon arrival in Syria, Lebanese Social Affairs Minister Haneen Sayed said. Transport is also covered and fees have been waived by border authorities, she said.

"I think it's a good and important start. We have discussed and are coordinating this with our Syrian counterparts and I think the numbers will increase in the coming weeks," Sayed told Reuters. A Syrian interior ministry spokesperson did not respond to a request for comment.

More than 6 million Syrians fled as refugees after conflict broke out in Syria in 2011, with most heading to Türkiye, Lebanon and Jordan. Lebanon has the highest concentration of refugees per capita in the world, hosting about 1.5 million Syrians among a population of about 4 million Lebanese.

Some 11,000 have registered to return from Lebanon in the first week, and the government targets between 200,000 and 400,000 returns this year under the plan, Sayed said.

The Lebanese government is focused on informal tented settlements in the country, where some 200,000 refugees live, she added, and may provide Syrian breadwinners who stay in Lebanon with work permits for sectors such as agriculture and construction if their families return to Syria.

UN agencies previously viewed Syria as unsafe for large-scale returns due to uncertainty over security and persecution by the government of Bashar al-Assad, who was toppled in December.

That has changed.

Since taking over, the new Syrian government has said all Syrians are welcome home. A UN survey from earlier this year showed nearly 30% of refugees living in Middle Eastern countries wanted to go back, up from 2% when Assad was in power.

"While the situation in Syria continues to rapidly evolve, (UN refugee agency) UNHCR considers the current context a positive opportunity for larger numbers of Syrian refugees to return home, or to begin considering return in a realistic and durable way," Ivo Freijsen, UNHCR Representative in Lebanon, told Reuters.

As of the end of June 2025, UNHCR estimated that over 628,000 Syrians had crossed back to Syria via neighboring countries since 8 December 2024, including 191,000 via Lebanon.