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Burhan, Pompeo Discussed By Phone Removing Sudan From Terror List

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo stands with Sudanese Gen. Abdel-Fattah Burhan, the head of the ruling sovereign council, in Khartoum, Sudan, Tuesday, Aug. 25, 2020. (Sudanese Cabinet via AP)
US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo stands with Sudanese Gen. Abdel-Fattah Burhan, the head of the ruling sovereign council, in Khartoum, Sudan, Tuesday, Aug. 25, 2020. (Sudanese Cabinet via AP)
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Burhan, Pompeo Discussed By Phone Removing Sudan From Terror List

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo stands with Sudanese Gen. Abdel-Fattah Burhan, the head of the ruling sovereign council, in Khartoum, Sudan, Tuesday, Aug. 25, 2020. (Sudanese Cabinet via AP)
US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo stands with Sudanese Gen. Abdel-Fattah Burhan, the head of the ruling sovereign council, in Khartoum, Sudan, Tuesday, Aug. 25, 2020. (Sudanese Cabinet via AP)

President of the Transitional Sovereignty Council, Lt. Gen. Abdul-Fattah Al-Burhan discussed Monday with US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo arrangements related to removing Sudan from the list of states sponsoring terrorism, which is expected to be issued in the coming weeks, as well as the Sudanese role in maintaining peace in the region and resolving the conflict in Ethiopia.

The Sudanese Sovereignty Council said in a statement, of which Asharq Al-Awsat obtained a copy, that Burhan received a phone call from Pompeo regarding bilateral relations between Washington and Khartoum, and ways to promote and develop them, as well as issues of common interest at the regional and international levels.

The phone call also dealt with arrangements for removing Sudan's name from the list of states sponsoring terrorism, which is expected to be issued in the coming weeks.

According to the Sovereignty Council statement, the two men discussed the situation in Ethiopia, and the need to reach a peaceful settlement of the conflict in a way that achieves regional peace and strengthens security in the region. During the call, Pompeo expressed his country's appreciation of Sudan hosting Ethiopian refugees, despite the exceptional economic conditions it is witnessing.

Sudan had been listed as a state sponsor of terrorism since 1993 for harboring al Qaeda’s then-leader, Osama bin Laden, and aiding terrorist groups.

Washington later imposed economic sanctions on Sudan, due to the bloody conflict in Darfur and the killing of hundreds of thousands, and the displacement of about two million persons.

Last October, US outgoing President Donald Trump said the United States would remove Sudan from its list of state sponsors of terrorism after the country’s new government pays millions to American victims.

“New government of Sudan, which is making great progress, agreed to pay $335 MILLION to US terror victims and families. Once deposited, I will lift Sudan from the State Sponsors of Terrorism list. At long last, JUSTICE for the American people and BIG step for Sudan!” Trump wrote on Twitter.

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Syria Arrests Officer Linked to Notorious ‘Death Checkpoint’ Near Damascus

Maj. Gen. Mowaffaq Nazeer Haidar, a former commander of the Syrian army’s Third Armoured Division (Interior Ministry) 
Maj. Gen. Mowaffaq Nazeer Haidar, a former commander of the Syrian army’s Third Armoured Division (Interior Ministry) 
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Syria Arrests Officer Linked to Notorious ‘Death Checkpoint’ Near Damascus

Maj. Gen. Mowaffaq Nazeer Haidar, a former commander of the Syrian army’s Third Armoured Division (Interior Ministry) 
Maj. Gen. Mowaffaq Nazeer Haidar, a former commander of the Syrian army’s Third Armoured Division (Interior Ministry) 

Syrian authorities said on Tuesday they had arrested Maj. Gen. Mowaffaq Nazeer Haidar, a former commander of the Syrian army’s Third Armored Division, over allegations of war crimes and abuses committed at a notorious checkpoint near Damascus.

Haidar, who oversaw the Qutayfah checkpoint along the Damascus-Homs highway north of the capital, is accused of playing a direct role in the disappearance of thousands of Syrians during the country's civil war.

The checkpoint, located near the Third Division’s headquarters, one of Syria's most powerful military units, was widely known among Syrians as a site of torture and arbitrary detention.

In a statement, the Internal Security Directorate in the coastal city of Latakia said Haidar had been detained and described him as a “criminal responsible for the so-called ‘death checkpoint’ at Qutayfah,” and a leading figure in raids carried out by pro-government forces across various parts of the country.

He has been referred to the counter-terrorism unit for interrogation on charges including war crimes and grave violations against civilians, the statement added.

The Qutayfah checkpoint, located at the northern entrance to Damascus, was one of the most notorious and feared military checkpoints during Syria’s civil war, widely associated with the regime’s crackdown on dissidents and army deserters.

Once operated by the Syrian army’s powerful Third Armored Division, the checkpoint was known by Syrians under grim monikers such as the “Death Checkpoint,” the “Checkpoint of Fear,” the “Checkpoint of Horror,” and the “Checkpoint of Arrests and Executions.”

It became a symbol of terror, particularly for residents of the Qalamoun region, but also for Syrians across the country.

According to earlier media reports, thousands of Syrians vanished at the Qutayfah checkpoint during the height of the conflict, many detained without formal charges or due process, often on mere suspicion of opposition sympathies or draft evasion.