Hamdok Holds Intensive Consultations to Reunite the Ruling FFC

The Sudanese Prime Minister Abdullah Hamdok (Arabic website)
The Sudanese Prime Minister Abdullah Hamdok (Arabic website)
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Hamdok Holds Intensive Consultations to Reunite the Ruling FFC

The Sudanese Prime Minister Abdullah Hamdok (Arabic website)
The Sudanese Prime Minister Abdullah Hamdok (Arabic website)

Sudanese Prime Minister Abdullah Hamdok is resiliently trying to reconcile the Forces of Freedom and Change alliance (FFC) with its deserters a few days after security turmoil swept the Northeast African country due to fragmentation within revolutionaries.

On Sunday, Hamdok held a session with the FFC’s central council, which the country’s transitional government relies on as a political reference for civilian matters. This meeting took place after the prime minister talking with defectors from the alliance.

It is noteworthy that the FFC was formed in early January 2019, during the popular uprising that toppled the government of ousted President Omar al-Bashir on April 11, 2019.

Consequently, parties in the political organization signed the Declaration of Freedom and Change (DFC) as a precursor for how the country would be run in a post-Bashir era.

The FFC is considered the largest political alliance in Sudan’s history since its independence.

It includes alliances that opposed the Islamist regime, such as the left-leaning National Consensus Forces, the Sudan Call, which provides for partisan forces and armed movements, the Unionist Gathering, and the Sudanese Professionals Association other social and political forces.

The FFC led marathon negotiations with the Transitional Military Council, which took power after the fall of Bashir’s regime, which led to the signing of the DFC that provided for a power-sharing arrangement between civilians and military personnel.

According to the DFC, the military would assume charge of protecting sovereignty, but under the formation of two councils with equal powers. One of the councils will be held by military officials, while the other will be run by ministers who are chosen by the FFC.

Nevertheless, the ministries of defense and interior would not be chosen by the FFC.

Since the declaration’s signing, the FFC underwent turbulences that saw some parties exiting from the alliance over difficulties and differences in viewpoints after signing the DFC.



UN Aid Chief Demands Evidence After Israel Accuses Staff of Links to Hamas

 Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator Tom Fletcher speaks to delegates about the situation in Gaza during a United Nations Security Council meeting at UN headquarters, in New York City, US, July 16, 2025. (Reuters)
Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator Tom Fletcher speaks to delegates about the situation in Gaza during a United Nations Security Council meeting at UN headquarters, in New York City, US, July 16, 2025. (Reuters)
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UN Aid Chief Demands Evidence After Israel Accuses Staff of Links to Hamas

 Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator Tom Fletcher speaks to delegates about the situation in Gaza during a United Nations Security Council meeting at UN headquarters, in New York City, US, July 16, 2025. (Reuters)
Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator Tom Fletcher speaks to delegates about the situation in Gaza during a United Nations Security Council meeting at UN headquarters, in New York City, US, July 16, 2025. (Reuters)

United Nations aid chief Tom Fletcher has demanded that Israel provide evidence for its accusations that staff with the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs were affiliated with Palestinian fighters from Hamas, according to a letter seen by Reuters on Friday.

At a UN Security Council meeting on Wednesday, Israel's UN Ambassador Danny Danon declared that Fletcher and OCHA were no longer neutral and that hundreds of OCHA employees would undergo security vetting. Israel would also restrict OCHA visas to one month, he said.

"Israel has uncovered clear evidence of Hamas affiliation within OCHA’s ranks," Danon told the 15-member council without providing evidence.

In a letter to the Security Council on Thursday, Fletcher said Danon's remarks were the first time any such concern had been raised and that the accusations were "extremely serious and have security implications for our staff."

"I expect the Israeli authorities to immediately share any evidence that led them to make such claims to the council," Fletcher said.

He noted that around the world OCHA engages with all parties to armed conflict to secure humanitarian access, press for the protection of civilians and promote respect for humanitarian principles, adding: "As Israeli authorities know, our contacts with Hamas have also supported hostage releases."

Israel is committed to helping civilians and getting aid to those in need, Danon said, though he warned: "We will not work with organizations that have chosen politics over principles."

The war in Gaza was triggered on October 7, 2023, when Hamas killed 1,200 people in southern Israel and took some 250 hostages, according to Israeli tallies. Since then, Israel's military campaign has killed nearly 60,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza health authorities, and reduced much of the enclave to ruins.

"We must hold all parties to the standards of international law in this conflict," Fletcher wrote in his letter. "We do not choose between demanding the end to the starvation of civilians in Gaza and demanding the unconditional release of all the hostages."

Israel, which controls all supplies entering Gaza, denies it is responsible for shortages of food.