Sudan Regrets Requests of Diplomats for Asylum in the UK

The building containing the embassy of Sudan in London, UK (Embassy of Sudan)
The building containing the embassy of Sudan in London, UK (Embassy of Sudan)
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Sudan Regrets Requests of Diplomats for Asylum in the UK

The building containing the embassy of Sudan in London, UK (Embassy of Sudan)
The building containing the embassy of Sudan in London, UK (Embassy of Sudan)

The Sudanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs expressed its regret at the decision of the assistants of the military attaché at the embassy in London to apply for political asylum in Britain.

The Sudan Tribune Agency indicated that the assistants of the military attaché at the embassy stirred controversy in the country after applying for political asylum, in light of the transitional government that guaranteed general and political freedoms.

In a statement, the Foreign Ministry clarified that after the end of the term of two assistants of the military attaché last August, they settled their dues and received return tickets to Sudan, however, they declared their refusal to return the country and their intention to seek political asylum.

The German news agency (DPA) reported the statement, which included the Ministry’s regret that the aforementioned assistants made their own personal decision without any regard of the general considerations related to the official duties they were performing.

The Ministry affirmed that it will work to ensure that all employees adhere to the relevant regulations, measures, and considerations, denying any other embassy employees applying for political asylum and affirming that all diplomatic employees are performing their duties.



Lebanon Elects Army Chief as New President

The Lebanese Parliament building a day before a session to elect the Lebanese president, in Beirut, Lebanon, 08 January 2025. (EPA)
The Lebanese Parliament building a day before a session to elect the Lebanese president, in Beirut, Lebanon, 08 January 2025. (EPA)
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Lebanon Elects Army Chief as New President

The Lebanese Parliament building a day before a session to elect the Lebanese president, in Beirut, Lebanon, 08 January 2025. (EPA)
The Lebanese Parliament building a day before a session to elect the Lebanese president, in Beirut, Lebanon, 08 January 2025. (EPA)

Lebanon's parliament elected army chief Joseph Aoun head of state on Thursday, filling the vacant presidency with a general who enjoys US approval and showing the diminished sway of the Iran-backed Hezbollah group after its devastating war with Israel.
The outcome reflected shifts in the power balance in Lebanon and the wider Middle East, with Hezbollah badly pummelled from last year's war, and its Syrian ally Bashar al-Assad toppled in December.
The presidency, reserved for a Maronite Christian in Lebanon's sectarian power-sharing system, has been vacant since Michel Aoun's term ended in October 2022, with deeply divided factions unable to agree on a candidate able to win enough votes in the 128-seat parliament.
Aoun fell short of the 86 votes needed in a first round vote, but crossed the threshold with 99 votes in a second round, according to Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, after lawmakers from Hezbollah and its Shiite ally the Amal Movement backed him.
Momentum built behind Aoun on Wednesday as Hezbollah's long preferred candidate, Suleiman Franjieh, withdrew and declared support for the army commander, and as French envoy shuttled around Beirut, urging his election in meetings with politicians, three Lebanese political sources said.
Aoun's election is a first step towards reviving government institutions in a country which has had neither a head of state nor a fully empowered cabinet since Aoun left office.
Lebanon, its economy still reeling from a devastating financial collapse in 2019, is in dire need of international support to rebuild from the war, which the World Bank estimates cost the country $8.5 billion.
Lebanon's system of government requires the new president to convene consultations with lawmakers to nominate a Sunni Muslim prime minister to form a new cabinet, a process that can often be protracted as factions barter over ministerial portfolios.
Aoun has a key role in shoring up a ceasefire between Hezbollah and Israel which was brokered by Washington and Paris in November. The terms require the Lebanese military to deploy into south Lebanon as Israeli troops and Hezbollah withdraw forces.
Aoun, 60, has been commander of the Lebanese army since 2017.