Jordanian Police Arrest 97 Fugitives, Racketeering Suspects

Jordanian security vehicles seen near the General Intelligence directorate offices, north of Amman, Jordan, June 6, 2016. Reuters.
Jordanian security vehicles seen near the General Intelligence directorate offices, north of Amman, Jordan, June 6, 2016. Reuters.
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Jordanian Police Arrest 97 Fugitives, Racketeering Suspects

Jordanian security vehicles seen near the General Intelligence directorate offices, north of Amman, Jordan, June 6, 2016. Reuters.
Jordanian security vehicles seen near the General Intelligence directorate offices, north of Amman, Jordan, June 6, 2016. Reuters.

A Jordanian security source said 97 fugitives and suspected racketeers were arrested on Saturday by a police commando force.

The raid came after the Public Security Department (PSD) had launched a crackdown on "wanted fugitives, recidivists, racketeers and those who intimidate citizens," the source added.

A PSD spokesman said among those apprehended five are placed on a most-wanted list.

He also stressed that the clampdown will continue across the Kingdom "until all wanted and suspected persons are nabbed."

Last week, a 16-year-old’s hands were chopped off and his eyes gouged out by a gang of men in Jordan's Zarqa city, causing shock and widespread anger in the country.

The special police taskforce said it has arrested 10 suspects involved in the crime.

For his part, the prosecutor of the Criminal Court ensured that the perpetrators will receive the maximum punishment enshrined in the law.



Sudanese Stakeholders Hold Roundtable Talks in Geneva

A previous meeting of the coordination of Tagadum with the officials of the African Mechanism in Addis Ababa. (Tagadum on Facebook)
A previous meeting of the coordination of Tagadum with the officials of the African Mechanism in Addis Ababa. (Tagadum on Facebook)
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Sudanese Stakeholders Hold Roundtable Talks in Geneva

A previous meeting of the coordination of Tagadum with the officials of the African Mechanism in Addis Ababa. (Tagadum on Facebook)
A previous meeting of the coordination of Tagadum with the officials of the African Mechanism in Addis Ababa. (Tagadum on Facebook)

Geneva has hosted a third “roundtable” of meetings involving Sudanese political and civil groups aimed at bridging the gap between the country’s warring parties. These talks, coordinated by the French organization Promediation, follow similar meetings held previously in Cairo and Geneva. The primary goals are to negotiate a ceasefire and facilitate humanitarian aid to civilians.

The two-day meetings, which began on Monday, include representatives from the Coordination of Democratic Civil Forces (Tagadum), the pro-army Democratic Bloc coalition, and armed movements aligned with the bloc. However, some groups have announced their boycott of the meetings.

The Democratic Bloc has shown conflicting stances on attending the Geneva talks. Mohammed Zakaria, spokesperson for the bloc and a member of the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM), announced his group’s decision not to participate.

Omar Khalafallah, a leader in the Democratic Unionist Party and another bloc spokesperson, refuted Zakaria’s statement, insisting that the bloc would attend the meetings to promote a national vision.

A source within the Democratic Bloc told Asharq Al-Awsat that the meetings revealed significant internal divisions in the coalition. The JEM, led by current Finance Minister Jibril Ibrahim, appears to be charting its own course, which the source described as a form of defection.

In remarks to Asharq Al-Awsat, Sharif Mohammed Osman, a leader in Tagadum and the political secretary of the Sudanese Congress Party, explained that the meetings seek to achieve consensus on ending the war through negotiated solutions, starting with a humanitarian truce to ensure aid delivery and the opening of safe corridors.

These measures are considered preliminary steps toward a ceasefire and a peaceful resolution to the conflict, he underlined.

A wide array of civilian leaders are participating in the talks, including key figures from Tagadum, such as Sudanese Congress Party leader Omar Al-Dukair, Federal Gathering Party leader Babiker Faisal, and head of the Sudan Liberation Movement – Transitional Council Al-Hadi Idris.

Osman expressed optimism that the participants would issue a unified final statement addressing the peaceful resolution of the war and agreeing on a humanitarian truce to facilitate aid delivery.

In October, Cairo hosted a similar meeting, which resulted in a final statement signed by the participating groups, except for the Sudan Liberation Movement – Minni Minnawi faction and the JEM – Jibril Ibrahim faction, which refused to endorse the Cairo declaration despite attending the discussions.

Promediation, a French organization supported by the French and Swiss foreign ministries, has played a consistent role in Sudanese affairs. Since June 2022, it has organized roundtable discussions, initially focusing on negotiations between Darfuri armed movements before expanding its scope to include Sudanese political and civil forces in the wake of the war.