Sudan Forms Specialized Committees to Accelerate Peace Talks

Sudan's Sovereign Council Chief General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, South Sudan's President Salva Kiir and Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok after signing a peace agreement in Juba, South Sudan. (Reuters)
Sudan's Sovereign Council Chief General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, South Sudan's President Salva Kiir and Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok after signing a peace agreement in Juba, South Sudan. (Reuters)
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Sudan Forms Specialized Committees to Accelerate Peace Talks

Sudan's Sovereign Council Chief General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, South Sudan's President Salva Kiir and Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok after signing a peace agreement in Juba, South Sudan. (Reuters)
Sudan's Sovereign Council Chief General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, South Sudan's President Salva Kiir and Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok after signing a peace agreement in Juba, South Sudan. (Reuters)

Talks between delegations from the Sudanese government and Abdelaziz al-Hilu’s Sudan People’s Liberation Movement (SPLM-N al-Hilu) in Juba have so far faltered.

Member of the Transitional Sovereign Council Lieutenant General Shams El-Din Kabbashi led the government delegation, while the movement’s delegation was headed by its Secretary- General Ammar Amoun. The talks had kicked off on Wednesday.

Rapporteur of the Southern Sudanese mediation committee Dr. Dhieu Mathok said both sides discussed notes submitted by the government delegation on the draft framework agreement.

In press statements following the meeting, Mathok said some pending issues require more negotiations.

A decision was taken to form specialized committees from both delegations to discuss each disputed issue separately and bring views closer.

The system of governance and administration, security arrangements, economy and social affairs and the judicial system are among the outstanding issues.

The government delegation’s official spokesman, Khaled Omar Yousef, predicted that a peace agreement would be signed as soon as negotiations are completed.

The formation of specialized committees will eventually achieve a breakthrough, sources stressed to Asharq Al-Awsat.

The committees are expected to submit reports in accordance with the timeline set by the mediation at the end of the round of talks on Sunday to finalize the peace accord.

The Sudanese government and a major rebel group from its southern Nuba Mountains signed in March a Declaration of Principles, which paved the way for a final peace agreement by guaranteeing freedom of worship to all while separating religion and the state.

In the draft framework agreement, the SPLM-N requested a six-month period preceding the transitional period to establish agreed up institutions and mechanisms, hold elections and assess the performance of the elected government.



Dozens Die of Mysterious Illness in Besieged Sudan Town

FILE PHOTO: Sudanese people, displaced from Jezira state due to RSF violence, sit under a tree in New Halfa, Kassala state, Sudan, November 3, 2024. REUTERS/El Tayeb Siddig/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: Sudanese people, displaced from Jezira state due to RSF violence, sit under a tree in New Halfa, Kassala state, Sudan, November 3, 2024. REUTERS/El Tayeb Siddig/File Photo
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Dozens Die of Mysterious Illness in Besieged Sudan Town

FILE PHOTO: Sudanese people, displaced from Jezira state due to RSF violence, sit under a tree in New Halfa, Kassala state, Sudan, November 3, 2024. REUTERS/El Tayeb Siddig/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: Sudanese people, displaced from Jezira state due to RSF violence, sit under a tree in New Halfa, Kassala state, Sudan, November 3, 2024. REUTERS/El Tayeb Siddig/File Photo

At least 73 people have died of mysterious causes in the Sudanese town of al-Hilaliya, besieged by the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces, the Sudanese Doctors Union said late on Wednesday.
It is one of dozens of villages that have come under attack in eastern El Jezira state since the defection of a top RSF commander to the army, which prompted revenge attacks that have displaced more than 135,000 people.
The war between the two forces has created the world's largest humanitarian crisis, displacing more than 11 million and plunging more into hunger while drawing in foreign powers and prompting fears of state collapse, Reuters said.
While high death tolls in other parts of Jezira came as a result of RSF shelling and gunfire, in Hilaliya people have fallen ill with diarrhea, overwhelming a local hospital according to the union and three people from the area.
A network blackout enforced by the RSF has made it difficult to determine the exact cause.
One man who spoke to Reuters said three of his family members had died of the same illness, but he only found out days later when others escaped to an area with internet access.
Those who wish to leave must pay high sums at RSF checkpoints, said another man.
According to pro-democracy activists, the siege began on Oct. 29 when the RSF raided the town, killing five and surrounding residents inside three mosques.
Hilaliya is home to the family of defected commander Abuagla Keikal, which locals say may explain the siege of a previously stable trade hub that had housed 50,000 people, including many displaced from other areas.
The town's markets and warehouses were looted, witnesses said.
Satellite imagery from a Yale Humanitarian Lab report showed rapid increase in cemeteries in several Jezira towns since the latest revenge attacks began in late October. It also showed evidence of the burning of agricultural fields in the village of Azrag.