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Arab World

Sudan Factions Form New Alliance as Splits Deepen From Main Bloc

Head of the Sudan Liberation Movement and governor of Darfur Mini Minawi (L) and head of the Justice and Equality Movement and Finance Minister Gibril Ibrahim (C), as well as other political leaders, hold a conference entitled the "National Consensus Charter of the Forces of Freedom and Change" in Sudan's capital Khartoum, announcing the formation of an alliance separate from the country's main civilian bloc, on October 2, 2021. (AFP)
Head of the Sudan Liberation Movement and governor of Darfur Mini Minawi (L) and head of the Justice and Equality Movement and Finance Minister Gibril Ibrahim (C), as well as other political leaders, hold a conference entitled the "National Consensus Charter of the Forces of Freedom and Change" in Sudan's capital Khartoum, announcing the formation of an alliance separate from the country's main civilian bloc, on October 2, 2021. (AFP)
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Sudan Factions Form New Alliance as Splits Deepen From Main Bloc

Head of the Sudan Liberation Movement and governor of Darfur Mini Minawi (L) and head of the Justice and Equality Movement and Finance Minister Gibril Ibrahim (C), as well as other political leaders, hold a conference entitled the "National Consensus Charter of the Forces of Freedom and Change" in Sudan's capital Khartoum, announcing the formation of an alliance separate from the country's main civilian bloc, on October 2, 2021. (AFP)
Head of the Sudan Liberation Movement and governor of Darfur Mini Minawi (L) and head of the Justice and Equality Movement and Finance Minister Gibril Ibrahim (C), as well as other political leaders, hold a conference entitled the "National Consensus Charter of the Forces of Freedom and Change" in Sudan's capital Khartoum, announcing the formation of an alliance separate from the country's main civilian bloc, on October 2, 2021. (AFP)

Several political factions including ex-rebel groups announced Saturday the formation of an alliance separate from Sudan’s main civilian bloc, in the latest sign of splits marring the country’s transition.

The announcement at a ceremony in Khartoum came as Sudan reels from fragmentation within the Forces of Freedom and Change, an alliance which spearheaded protests that ousted president Omar al-Bashir in April 2019, AFP reported.

Sudan has since August 2019 been run by an administration of military generals and civilians from the FFC through a rocky transition marked by economic woes.

Splits have deepened within the FFC in recent months, and support for the transitional government led by Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok has waned in large part due to a raft of tough economic reforms.

Saturday’s ceremony included political parties as well as the Sudan Liberation Movement (SLM) faction led by Mini Minawi and the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM) of Gibril Ibrahim.

“We want a united FFC,” Minawi said during the ceremony.

“We urge the people on your side who pretend they are from the FFC to sit with us and listen to us,” he added, addressing both the head of Sudan’s Sovereign Council, Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, and the prime minister.

Hamdok did not attend Saturday’s ceremony.

In early September, he was at the signing ceremony for an alliance of other factions within the FFC that also called for unity, calling it a “step in the right direction.”

Neither Minawi nor Ibrahim took part in that signing.

In October last year, Minawi’s SLM faction and Ibrahim’s JEM were among rebel groups that signed a peace deal with the government to end long-running conflicts under Bashir.

Minawi was named governor of western Sudan’s war-ravaged Darfur region in May, while Ibrahim was appointed finance minister last February.

On September 21, the government announced thwarting a coup attempt by military officers and civilians who it said were linked to Bashir’s regime.

The country has been grappling with protests in east Sudan by key tribes opposed to the October peace deal.

Protests have also erupted in major cities including Khartoum condemning the military coup attempt and calling for civilian rule.

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Arab World

Damascus Says Security Operation Ends in Ashrafiyat Sahnaya

Armed members of Syria's Druze community attend the funeral of seven people killed during overnight clashes with Syrian security forces, in Damascus, on April 30, 2025. (Photo by AFP)
Armed members of Syria's Druze community attend the funeral of seven people killed during overnight clashes with Syrian security forces, in Damascus, on April 30, 2025. (Photo by AFP)
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Damascus Says Security Operation Ends in Ashrafiyat Sahnaya

Armed members of Syria's Druze community attend the funeral of seven people killed during overnight clashes with Syrian security forces, in Damascus, on April 30, 2025. (Photo by AFP)
Armed members of Syria's Druze community attend the funeral of seven people killed during overnight clashes with Syrian security forces, in Damascus, on April 30, 2025. (Photo by AFP)

The head of security in Syria’s Damascus countryside, Hussam Al-Tahan, said a security operation in the flashpoint town of Ashrafiyat Sahnaya had concluded, with Syrian forces now deployed across all neighborhoods to restore calm and stability.

State-run SANA news agency quoted Tahan as saying security forces had taken full control of the area, located southwest of the capital, and were launching measures to secure civilians and stabilize the situation.

Syrian state television reported that large reinforcements from General Security had entered the town to pursue what it described as “outlawed groups,” with forces now deployed at all entry and exit points to prevent further violence.

At least 75 people were injured over the past 48 hours in Sahnaya, according to state television, amid heavy gunfire and attacks blamed on armed groups. The clashes have stoked fears of deepening sectarian tensions in the area.

In an effort to defuse the crisis, local dignitaries and religious leaders from the Druze community held a meeting with the governors of Damascus countryside, Sweida, and Quneitra. Syria’s top cleric, Grand Mufti Sheikh Osama Abdul Karim Al-Rifai, called on citizens to reject sectarian strife.

“Any act of revenge or retaliation is unjust,” the Mufti said in a televised address on Wednesday. “Syrian blood is sacred. Do not listen to calls for revenge – extinguishing this strife will save lives,” he added, urging Syrians to allow justice to take its course.

The Interior Ministry said in a statement that armed militants had launched a surprise assault on several General Security checkpoints in Ashrafiyat Sahnaya using light weapons and rocket-propelled grenades, injuring a number of personnel.

In response, security forces fanned out across the area. But snipers from the armed groups reportedly took up positions on rooftops, targeting officers and killing five General Security members and wounding others.

In the early hours of Wednesday, the ministry added, militants opened fire on a vehicle arriving from the southern province of Daraa, killing six civilians inside.

General Security forces have since tightened control in and around the town, sending additional units to contain the violence and ensure the safety of residents.

A curfew was imposed on Tuesday after gunmen based in a nearby town launched an attack on security posts surrounding Ashrafiyat Sahnaya. The situation briefly calmed after General Security forces took up positions at the town’s eastern entrance, but clashes flared again overnight and continued into Wednesday morning.

A security source in Damascus said a wide-scale sweep was underway to arrest armed groups accused of using the town as a base for launching “terrorist operations” against civilians.

Speaking to Asharq Al-Awsat, residents described a harrowing night of intense gunfire, explosions, and drone activity. “We didn’t sleep. The sound of gunfire and mortars didn’t stop,” said one civilian source. “Snipers were on rooftops, and drones hovered all night.”

With no reliable news source other than conflicting and fear-inducing social media updates, residents expressed confusion about the unfolding events.

Locals called on Syrian civil society to act and protest against incitement and militia activity, urging the disarmament of rogue groups. They warned that armed factions from outside Sahnaya were launching attacks from the town’s outskirts, including a shooting incident on Tuesday that targeted a General Security checkpoint.

Tensions flared further in and around the Syrian capital as the town of Jaramana, south of Damascus, held funerals on Wednesday for seven people killed in overnight clashes earlier this week.

The city witnessed heavy fighting between Monday and Tuesday night, part of a broader wave of unrest in southern Damascus and surrounding areas.