Egypt, US Exchange Views on Region’s Crises

Shoukry participates at the Major Economies Forum on Energy and Climate (MEF) meeting. Egypt’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Shoukry participates at the Major Economies Forum on Energy and Climate (MEF) meeting. Egypt’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs
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Egypt, US Exchange Views on Region’s Crises

Shoukry participates at the Major Economies Forum on Energy and Climate (MEF) meeting. Egypt’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Shoukry participates at the Major Economies Forum on Energy and Climate (MEF) meeting. Egypt’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs

Egypt and the United States have stressed continuous coordination to achieve stability in the region.

Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry discussed bilateral ties during a phone call.

Spokesman for the Egyptian Foreign Ministry, Ahmed Hafez, said the two ministers discussed reinforcing bilateral relations.

They also exchanged points of view regarding several regional issues to achieve stability and security in the region.

Shoukry and Blinken led the US-Egypt Strategic Dialogue in Washington in November.

In another context, Egypt’s Foreign Ministry held consultations with a number of states and parties to learn about their visions on different topics regarding climate change, as part of ongoing preparations for hosting the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP27).

Egypt is scheduled to host the annual conference in November this year in Sharm El-Sheikh.

In a statement, the ministry said the consultations were held via videoconference with the United States, Russia, Japan, Zambia, and a number of countries that share the same visions, as well as a group of African negotiators.

During the talks, the outcomes of the COP26 that was held in Glasgow were assessed, and the ongoing preparations for the November conference were discussed, the ministry added.

Shoukry took part in a virtual Major Economies Forum on Energy and Climate (MEF) meeting at the ministerial level.

The meeting was also attended by US Special Presidential Envoy for Climate John Kerry, COP President Alok Sharma, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Germany Annalena Baerbock, Russian Special Presidential Envoy for Climate Change Ruslan Edelgeriev, and Secretary-General of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) Patricia Espinosa.



Sudan’s Ruling Council Reshuffles Cabinet amid Brutal Conflict

A damaged building in Omdurman, Sudan, 01 November 2024 (issued 04 November 2024). (EPA)
A damaged building in Omdurman, Sudan, 01 November 2024 (issued 04 November 2024). (EPA)
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Sudan’s Ruling Council Reshuffles Cabinet amid Brutal Conflict

A damaged building in Omdurman, Sudan, 01 November 2024 (issued 04 November 2024). (EPA)
A damaged building in Omdurman, Sudan, 01 November 2024 (issued 04 November 2024). (EPA)

Sudan's army leader Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, at war with paramilitaries, has announced a cabinet reshuffle that replaces four ministers including those for foreign affairs and the media.

The late Sunday announcement comes with the northeast African country gripped by the world's worst displacement crisis, threatened by famine and desperate for aid, according to the UN.

In a post on its official Facebook page, Sudan's ruling sovereignty council said Burhan had approved replacement of the ministers of foreign affairs, the media, religious affairs and trade.

The civil war that began in April 2023 pits Burhan's military against the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) paramilitaries under the command of his former deputy Mohamed Hamdan Daglo.

Since then, the army-aligned Sudanese government has been operating from the eastern city of Port Sudan, which has largely remained shielded from the violence.

But the Sudanese state "is completely absent from the scene" in all sectors, economist Haitham Fathy told AFP earlier this year.

The council did not disclose reasons behind the reshuffle but it coincides with rising violence in al-Gezira, south of the capital Khartoum, and North Darfur in Sudan's far west bordering Chad.

On Friday the spokesman for United Nations chief Antonio Guterres said he condemned attacks by the RSF on Gezira, after the United States made a similar call over the violence against civilians.

Among the key government changes, Ambassador Ali Youssef al-Sharif, a retired diplomat who previously served as Sudan's ambassador to China and South Africa, was appointed foreign minister.

He replaces Hussein Awad Ali who had held the role for seven months.

Journalist and TV presenter Khalid Ali Aleisir, based in London, was named minister of culture and media.

The reshuffle also saw Omar Banfir assigned to the trade ministry and Omar Bakhit appointed to the ministry of religious affairs.

Over the past two weeks, the RSF increased attacks on civilians in Gezira following the army's announcement that an RSF commander had defected.

According to an AFP tally based on medical and activist sources, at least 200 people were killed in Gezira last month alone. The UN reports that the violence has forced around 120,000 people from their homes.

In total, Sudan hosts more than 11 million displaced people, while another 3.1 million are now sheltering beyond its borders, according to the International Organization for Migration.