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Rights Groups Sound Alarm on Jump in Iraqi Activist Assassinations

Angry Iraqi demonstrators mourn the killing of female activist and paramedic Janat Madhi, in Basra on Tuesday night, part of an upsurge of violence against the three-month-old protest movement. — AFP
Angry Iraqi demonstrators mourn the killing of female activist and paramedic Janat Madhi, in Basra on Tuesday night, part of an upsurge of violence against the three-month-old protest movement. — AFP
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Rights Groups Sound Alarm on Jump in Iraqi Activist Assassinations

Angry Iraqi demonstrators mourn the killing of female activist and paramedic Janat Madhi, in Basra on Tuesday night, part of an upsurge of violence against the three-month-old protest movement. — AFP
Angry Iraqi demonstrators mourn the killing of female activist and paramedic Janat Madhi, in Basra on Tuesday night, part of an upsurge of violence against the three-month-old protest movement. — AFP

Human rights monitors sounded the alarm over a recent spike in assassinations targeting civil rights activists in Iraq's south on Thursday, ahead of a much anticipated meeting between the prime minister and the US president as part of ongoing strategic talks.

Mustafa al-Kadhimi departed for an official trip to Washington this week and is expected to meet with President Donald Trump on Thursday to conclude strategic talks expected to shape the future of Iraq-US ties.

Assassination plots have targeted more civil activists this month in southern Iraq, compared to the period at the height of the protest movement in October, monitors said. Iran-backed militia groups are widely suspected of perpetrating both.

Tens of thousands of Iraqis took to the streets in October to decry rampant government corruption, poor services and unemployment in Baghdad and across Iraq’s south. Hundreds died as Iraqi forces used live ammunition and tear gas to disperse crowds, The Associated Press (AP) reported.

Activist Reham Yacoub was gunned down in the southern Iraqi province of Basra on Wednesday by unidentified gunmen, a security official and human rights watcher said, marking the second such killing in the span of a week. The official spoke on condition of anonymity in line with regulations.

Activist Tahseen Osama was killed Friday, prompting dozens to take to the streets and block roads. Police responded by firing live rounds at the demonstrators.

Yacoub was a respected activist who took part in many protests in 2018 and October.

“It seems that there is a well programmed cleansing of activists who were influential in the last protest movement,” said Ali al-Bayati, spokesman for the semi-official Iraqi Independent High Commission for Human Rights.

According to the commission, there have been six assassination attempts targeting activists with two killed in Basra in the month of August alone. That represents a jump as the commission recorded 16 attempted targeted killings in the 10 months after the uprising started in October.

A recent government investigation said 560 protesters and security forces were killed in the October movement. The probe drew criticism from activists who said it fell short of naming the perpetrators, who are widely suspected of having links to Iran-backed militia groups.

Al-Kadhimi fired the Basra police chief on Monday and ordered a new probe into the killing of Osama.

According to AP, in Washington, talks are expected to focus on the future of the US-led coalition in Iraq. Coalition troops have left most bases in a planned drawdown. US officials have also voiced concern over the presence of Iran-backed militia groups.

Following a meeting in Washington with Iraqi Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein on Wednesday, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo told reporters that armed groups outside of state control “have impeded our progress."

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Hemedti Aide: Ready for Talks to End Sudan War if Seriousness Shown

Ezz El-Din Al-Safi, senior adviser to the commander of Sudan’s Rapid Support Forces (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Ezz El-Din Al-Safi, senior adviser to the commander of Sudan’s Rapid Support Forces (Asharq Al-Awsat)
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Hemedti Aide: Ready for Talks to End Sudan War if Seriousness Shown

Ezz El-Din Al-Safi, senior adviser to the commander of Sudan’s Rapid Support Forces (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Ezz El-Din Al-Safi, senior adviser to the commander of Sudan’s Rapid Support Forces (Asharq Al-Awsat)

A senior adviser to the commander of Sudan’s paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) said the group is open to serious negotiations with the government based in Port Sudan to end the country’s devastating conflict, now in its third year, provided there is genuine political will from the other side.

The remarks by Ezz El-Din Al-Safi, who is also a member of the RSF’s negotiating team, come as international actors prepare to meet in Brussels on Thursday in a bid to lay the groundwork for a ceasefire.

The talks are expected to include the European Union, African Union, the United States, the United Kingdom, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, and Bahrain.

“Negotiations could begin with confidence-building measures and credible arrangements,” Al-Safi told Asharq Al-Awsat.

“Dialogue remains the best path to ending a war that has no winners, only losers, both the people and the nation.”

He said the RSF is ready to discuss the location, timing, and possible mediators for peace talks, but stressed that any engagement must be met with equal seriousness by Sudan’s military-backed government.

However, Al-Safi cautioned that his group would not accept talks that merely allow the opposing side to regroup and secure external support to resume fighting.

“We cannot enter into a dialogue that gives the other party time to reorganize and rearm,” he said, adding that the RSF remains “at its strongest” on the battlefield.

Sudan’s army has conditioned any peace negotiations on the implementation of the Jeddah Declaration, a humanitarian agreement signed in May 2023. The deal, brokered by Saudi Arabia and the United States, has since been marred by mutual accusations of violations from both the military and the RSF.

Meanwhile, the RSF is pushing ahead with plans to form a rival administration in areas under its control.

Al-Safi, a senior adviser to RSF commander Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, known as Hemedti, said the group is nearing the formation of what he called a “government of unity and peace.”

He added that over 90% of the preparations for the announcement have been completed.

“The delay in announcing the government is due to ongoing consultations among members of the Founding Sudan Alliance [Tasis], which supports this move,” Al-Safi told Asharq Al-Awsat. “It’s not because of internal disagreements, as some have suggested.”

Asked about the planned capital of the parallel government, Al-Safi declined to name the city but suggested it would not be Khartoum.

“There are cities more beautiful than Khartoum,” he said. “From a strategic perspective, I believe the capital should be temporary and capable of accommodating all institutions of government.”

He only noted that the proposed city is located in territory controlled by the Tasis alliance.

The RSF’s moves come amid growing fears that the fragmentation of Sudan will deepen if parallel authorities are entrenched, further complicating efforts to reach a comprehensive peace.