Sudan Says Has Demands before Normalizing Ties with Israel

Pompeo on an official visit to Sudan to urge more Arab countries to normalize ties with Israel, following the US-brokered Israel-UAE agreement [AFP]
Pompeo on an official visit to Sudan to urge more Arab countries to normalize ties with Israel, following the US-brokered Israel-UAE agreement [AFP]
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Sudan Says Has Demands before Normalizing Ties with Israel

Pompeo on an official visit to Sudan to urge more Arab countries to normalize ties with Israel, following the US-brokered Israel-UAE agreement [AFP]
Pompeo on an official visit to Sudan to urge more Arab countries to normalize ties with Israel, following the US-brokered Israel-UAE agreement [AFP]

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo visited Sudan in late August ahead of the US elections as part of a regional tour to convince more Arab countries to normalize ties with Israel.

During his visit to Khartoum, Pompeo pledged to lift the country from the State Sponsors of Terrorism list, invite major US companies to invest in it and provide financial assistance if it normalizes relations with Israel, Acting Foreign Minister Omar Qamar al-Din told El Tayyar daily newspaper.

“However, Sudan demanded that the US first normalizes Sudan's relations with world countries and provide it with the necessary aid before discussing Sudanese-Israeli relations,” he noted.

The US designated Sudan a state sponsor of terrorism in 1993 over ousted President Omar al-Bashir’s ties with terrorist groups. The designation makes the country ineligible for much-needed debt relief and funding from international institutions and limits potential foreign investment.

However, the US expected that the “weak” country, which faces economic and political challenges and is struggling to return to the world order, would instantly approve the normalization request and raise President Donald Trump’s chances in the elections.

Qamar al-Din pointed out that Head of Sudan’s Sovereign Council Lieutenant General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan presented a list of conditions to Pompeo, who vowed to discuss them with the US and Israeli sides before giving the final response.

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok told Pompeo that his government had no mandate to normalize ties with Israel, and that such move would be decided after the transitional period.

The PM also urged the US not to link the issue of lifting Sudan from the State Sponsors of Terrorism list with the normalization with Israel request.

Despite Sudan’s announced position, Israeli officials have confirmed ongoing communication between the leaders of Khartoum and Tel Aviv.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was quoted by several Israeli newspapers as saying on Tuesday that Sudan, Chad and Oman will normalize relations with Israel after the UAE.

“We are having many more meetings with Arab and Muslim leaders to normalize relations, including Sudan and Oman,” he said.



War Shakes Middle East Airports, Passengers Held Hostage

Passengers wait at Beirut airport amid disruptions caused by Israeli-Iranian conflict (EPA)
Passengers wait at Beirut airport amid disruptions caused by Israeli-Iranian conflict (EPA)
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War Shakes Middle East Airports, Passengers Held Hostage

Passengers wait at Beirut airport amid disruptions caused by Israeli-Iranian conflict (EPA)
Passengers wait at Beirut airport amid disruptions caused by Israeli-Iranian conflict (EPA)

The Israeli-Iranian war has severely disrupted air traffic across the Middle East, causing widespread airport closures and forcing the cancellation of hundreds of flights.

Travelers have been left stranded or forced to reroute their journeys amid altered takeoff and landing schedules, with many airports affected by military use of their airspace by both Tel Aviv and Tehran for warplanes, missiles, and drones.

Thousands of passengers have had to substitute flights with land or sea travel to avoid danger or endure long waits for alternate air transport.

Since the Israeli airstrikes on Iran that began in the early hours of last Friday, followed by Iran’s retaliatory drone and missile attacks, the airspace over Israel, Iran, Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, and Iraq has been closed.

Aviation sources reported that more than 650 flights bound for Europe were canceled. Gulf and European carriers have suspended flights to countries caught in the conflict zone.

Sources told Asharq Al-Awsat that airlines are now using safer flight routes, deliberately avoiding Iraqi, Syrian, Jordanian, and Lebanese airspace, as well as the fully closed skies of Israel and Iran.

Some carriers operating emergency flights to Beirut, Amman, and Egypt are following strict safety protocols.

Flights departing Beirut airport are routed westward over the Mediterranean Sea toward Cyprus and then Greece, before continuing to Europe or the Gulf, deliberately avoiding Lebanese, Syrian, and Iraqi airspace—a sharp contrast to pre-conflict routes.

Several Arab and European airlines, including Emirates, flydubai, Etihad, Air France, Transavia, Lufthansa, Ethiopian Airlines, Turkish Airlines, and Pegasus, continue to suspend flights to the region. The disruption has hit operations at Beirut’s Rafic Hariri International Airport, which experienced chaos in the initial days of the war and widespread passenger panic.

However, the airport has since begun stabilizing. Amin Jaber, Director General of Civil Aviation at Rafic Hariri Airport, said the facility “has overcome the initial disruption quickly by implementing swift solutions for stranded travelers.”

He added that a newly formed crisis management committee is closely monitoring risks hour by hour to keep flights clear of security threats.

Jaber confirmed that the conflict “has forced the crisis committee to adopt multiple flight paths for arrivals and departures at Rafic Hariri Airport.”

“Due to security concerns, we rely on the western runway, which is the safest, and use Cypriot airspace to steer aircraft away from missile threats. Whenever missile launches are detected, Lebanese airspace is immediately closed to all flights,” Jaber added.

The disruptions seen at Beirut’s Rafic Hariri International Airport mirror the wider chaos across the region’s airports. Jaber said all airlines operating arrivals and departures at Beirut have comprehensive risk assessments in place.

Beirut airport experienced significant turmoil during the first two days of the conflict, with hundreds of passengers forced to wait indefinitely after numerous flight cancellations and schedule changes.

Many opted to leave the airport and return to the city amid the uncertainty. Jaber noted that conditions have since improved both at Beirut and other airports that have partially suspended operations.

Before any civilian aircraft takes off or lands, airport authorities and airlines ensure no immediate threats jeopardize the safety of planes or passengers.

Former Middle East Airlines (MEA) pilot Mohammad Aziz told Asharq Al-Awsat that flight safety responsibility rests not with pilots alone, but with the risk assessment committees, civil aviation authorities, airport management, and air traffic control towers guiding pilots during flight.

Aziz revealed that planes are equipped with large fuel reserves allowing extended flight time to accommodate emergencies requiring route changes or longer airborne holding patterns.

Currently serving as a safety and security advisor to MEA’s chairman, Captain Aziz highlighted that Rafic Hariri Airport is among the least vulnerable to missile threats because its flight paths are directed west and north. He warned, however, that the greatest danger lies in flights over Syrian territory.

“Despite this,” Aziz said, “Beirut airport management exercises the utmost caution. The control tower and airport authorities remain on high alert, maintaining constant communication with pilots to reroute or divert flights to alternate airports if evolving conditions threaten aircraft and passengers.”