Sudan’s Al-Mahdi Transported to UAE for COVID-19 Treatment

Sadiq al-Mahdi talks during an interview with Reuters in Khartoum, Sudan, April 25, 2019. REUTERS/Umit Bektas
Sadiq al-Mahdi talks during an interview with Reuters in Khartoum, Sudan, April 25, 2019. REUTERS/Umit Bektas
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Sudan’s Al-Mahdi Transported to UAE for COVID-19 Treatment

Sadiq al-Mahdi talks during an interview with Reuters in Khartoum, Sudan, April 25, 2019. REUTERS/Umit Bektas
Sadiq al-Mahdi talks during an interview with Reuters in Khartoum, Sudan, April 25, 2019. REUTERS/Umit Bektas

The leader of Sudan’s National Umma Party, Sadiq al-Mahdi, arrived in the United Arab Emirates on Tuesday to complete his treatment after he had tested positive for the coronavirus.

Al-Mahdi was taken to Abu Dhabi for treatment.

On Monday, his party underlined in a statement that doctors at Alia Hospital decided to keep al-Mahdi under observation after he was infected along with 21 members of his family.

Social media activists shared a photo of al-Mahdi aboard the plane that took him to the UAE. He appeared wearing an oxygen mask.

Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok, whose close associates have also tested positive for the COVID-19 disease, described al-Mahdi as one of the pillars of the Sudanese national movement.

He wished him and his family members a speedy recovery.

Hamdok also said on his Facebook page that he hoped al-Mahdi would return to Sudan soon to carry out along with the rest of the factions the nation-building process.

Acting Health Minister Osama Ahmed Abdul Rahim denied that the country would go into a lockdown, reiterating his call for social distancing and wearing masks.

The decision of a lockdown hinges on the spread of the pandemic and the community’s ability to deal with it, he said.

The Health Ministry reported 10 new cases on Friday, and a further 47 cases on Saturday and Sunday.

This brought the country’s tally to 13,866. The Ministry also reported a total of 837 deaths.



Türkiye, Jordan, Syria, Iraq to Discuss Security Cooperation in Amman

Jordanian capital, Amman (Reuters)
Jordanian capital, Amman (Reuters)
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Türkiye, Jordan, Syria, Iraq to Discuss Security Cooperation in Amman

Jordanian capital, Amman (Reuters)
Jordanian capital, Amman (Reuters)

High-level delegations from Türkiye, Jordan, Syria and Iraq will meet in Amman on Sunday to discuss security cooperation and regional developments, a Turkish diplomatic source said on Saturday.

Last month, Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said that the four countries would take steps toward jointly combating the ISIS group in the region and they aimed to hold a first meeting on the issue in Jordan, Reuters reported.

Foreign ministers will attend the meeting as well as defense ministers or military chiefs, and heads of intelligence organizations of the four countries, the Turkish diplomatic source, speaking on condition of anonymity, said.

The officials will discuss cooperation in the areas of security, combating terrorism and organized crime, as well as regional developments, the source added.

Since the ousting of former Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in December, Western and regional countries have warned of a possible resurgence of ISIS.

Thousands of members of the militant group are being held in prison camps in northeast Syria, guarded by the US-allied Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF).

Türkiye regards the SDF and the YPG militia which spearheads the group as terrorists, and says the prisons must be handed over to Syria's new leadership and the YPG should disarm.