Sudan Interior Minister Vows to Combat Insubordination among Police Forces

Sudanese police officers stand guard in Khartoum on April 10, 2010. (AFP)
Sudanese police officers stand guard in Khartoum on April 10, 2010. (AFP)
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Sudan Interior Minister Vows to Combat Insubordination among Police Forces

Sudanese police officers stand guard in Khartoum on April 10, 2010. (AFP)
Sudanese police officers stand guard in Khartoum on April 10, 2010. (AFP)

Sudan’s Interior Minister Lt. Gen. Izz-Eddin Al-Sheikh vowed to fight insubordination within the police after a group of officers protested against low wages and deteriorating living conditions.

During a general meeting arranged on Monday by Al-Sheikh and the director-general of the police forces in the capital’s Tahrir Square, some police officers were given an ultimatum of either resigning or continuing to serve.

“Any police officer who does not want to work must submit his resignation,” Al-Sheikh told them firmly.

“The country will not break down for any individual, especially since the police force has a glorious and extensive history,” the minister explained, adding that the force’s “march forward will not be set back for a single person.”

“Both the government and the Interior Ministry attach great importance to the police force and will announce pay raises for all personnel,” revealed Al-Sheikh.

He moved on to welcome unhappy officers regardless of their choices of either staying or leaving and called on the force to practice the highest levels of discipline, duty, and respect for the leadership and state.

At the meeting, attended by Khartoum Governor Ayman Nimr and a host of senior police officials, Al-Sheikh reaffirmed a commitment to provide officers with the means to live decently and that a salary increase was on the horizon.

However, the wage hike needs to take into consideration the economic conditions and challenges facing the country.

“Police forces are disciplined and will continue their duties despite the difficulties facing the country,” reaffirmed Al-Sheikh.

On Monday, Nimr held an emergency meeting in which he ordered paying a bonus to all officers on the occasion of the Eid al-Adha holiday, which will be observed in mid-July.

Police Forces Director General Lt.-Gen. Khaled Mahdi Ibrahim reiterated a keenness for preserving the rights of officers, such as “providing them with legal protection, so they can perform their duties in maintaining security and protecting the homeland.”



Top Houthi Leaders Flee Sanaa Amid Trump-Ordered US Strikes

Top Houthi leaders disappear from Sanaa, communication cut off (Houthi Media)
Top Houthi leaders disappear from Sanaa, communication cut off (Houthi Media)
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Top Houthi Leaders Flee Sanaa Amid Trump-Ordered US Strikes

Top Houthi leaders disappear from Sanaa, communication cut off (Houthi Media)
Top Houthi leaders disappear from Sanaa, communication cut off (Houthi Media)

Senior Houthi leaders have disappeared from public life in Sanaa, gripped by fear of US airstrikes ordered by President Donald Trump, now entering their third week, sources in Yemen said.

The first-tier leadership of the Iran-aligned group is believed to have fled the capital, which remains under Houthi control, seeking shelter in remote areas of Saada and Amran provinces.

According to informed sources, the group’s leaders have severed traditional communication channels and several have either gone into hiding or relocated to undisclosed locations as a precaution against possible targeted strikes.

Since the launch of US airstrikes on March 15, senior and mid-level Houthi leaders have vanished from public view and social media platforms, Yemeni sources say, as fear of targeted attacks continues to grow within the group’s ranks.

Informed sources confirmed there has been no trace of the group’s top two tiers of leadership - neither in the institutions under Houthi control in Sanaa, nor on the streets and neighborhoods they once frequented in luxury vehicles.

Even the sectarian events that Houthi leaders were known to regularly attend have reportedly gone on without their visible presence.

The Houthi group has remained tight-lipped about the extent of its human and military losses following US airstrikes ordered by Trump.

However, sources say several leaders not belonging to the ruling family of Houthi leader Abdulmalik al-Houthi are still believed to be in Sanaa.

Many of these figures have adopted strict security measures to avoid detection, including travelling in vehicles with tinted windows and covering their faces with cloaks when leaving temporary residences, sources told Asharq Al-Awsat.

The precautions reflect growing fears of betrayal or being targeted by further strikes.

A source in Sanaa revealed that third-tier Houthi officials—mostly tribal figures and field supervisors—were instructed to flee to the northern provinces of Saada, Amran and other areas as US air raids intensified.

According to the source, mid-level Houthi officials have lost all direct contact with the group’s senior leadership after the latter switched locations and shut down their communication lines.