Sudanese Army Allies Propose Constitutional Document Amendments

People protest against the military, demanding it hand over power to civilians. (AFP)
People protest against the military, demanding it hand over power to civilians. (AFP)
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Sudanese Army Allies Propose Constitutional Document Amendments

People protest against the military, demanding it hand over power to civilians. (AFP)
People protest against the military, demanding it hand over power to civilians. (AFP)

The Forces of Freedom and Change – the National Accord Group in Sudan revealed the most prominent features of the constitutional declaration expected to be presented during the next few days.

The Group said it is committed to making amendments to the constitutional document - produced by the political agreement between civilians and the military in 2019 - instead of going to new constitutional arrangements.

Moreover, the Group stressed the need for “building a balanced relationship between the military and civilians.”

The political declaration, which the Group agreed upon, calls for a balanced relationship between the military component and its civilian counterpart.

It insists on the trial of all those accused and wanted by the International Criminal Court, most notably ousted President Omar al-Bashir, and his senior aides.

The Group is allied with the military component and supports the decisions of President of the Sovereign Council, army commander Abdel Fattah al-Burhan.

It represents political entities and armed movements that call for dialogue and consensus on national issues and includes armed factions that signed the Juba peace agreement.

The agreement had supported the 2021 military coup that overthrew the previous transitional government and resulted in amendments to the constitutional document.

In a press conference in Khartoum, the leader of the Group, Suleiman Sandal, revealed that most parties had proposed introducing amendments to the 2022 constitutional declaration because there isn’t enough time to talk about a new constitutional draft.



Türkiye Says It Believes Kurdish Fighters Will Be Forced Out of All Syrian Territory

Turkish Defense Minister Yasar Guler takes part in a NATO Defense Ministers' meeting at the Alliance's headquarters in Brussels, Belgium October 12, 2023. (Reuters)
Turkish Defense Minister Yasar Guler takes part in a NATO Defense Ministers' meeting at the Alliance's headquarters in Brussels, Belgium October 12, 2023. (Reuters)
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Türkiye Says It Believes Kurdish Fighters Will Be Forced Out of All Syrian Territory

Turkish Defense Minister Yasar Guler takes part in a NATO Defense Ministers' meeting at the Alliance's headquarters in Brussels, Belgium October 12, 2023. (Reuters)
Turkish Defense Minister Yasar Guler takes part in a NATO Defense Ministers' meeting at the Alliance's headquarters in Brussels, Belgium October 12, 2023. (Reuters)

Türkiye believes Syria's new rulers, including the Syrian National Army (SNA) armed group which Ankara backs, will drive Kurdish YPG fighters from all territory they occupy in northeastern Syria, Defense Minister Yasar Guler said on Sunday.

Türkiye regards the Syrian YPG as an extension of the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) militants who have fought an insurgency against the Turkish state for 40 years and are deemed terrorists by Ankara, Washington, and the European Union.

The YPG spearheads an alliance, the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), which is backed by the United States and controls territory in northeastern Syria. Since the fall of Syrian ruler Bashar al-Assad two weeks ago, Türkiye and Syrian groups it backs have fought against the SDF, seizing the city of Manbij.

"We believe that the new leadership in Syria and the Syrian National Army, which is an important part of its army, along with the Syrian people, will free all territories occupied by terrorist organizations," Guler said during a visit to Turkish troops on the Syrian border with military commanders.

"We will also take every necessary measure with the same determination until all terrorist elements beyond our borders are cleared," he said in a video released by his ministry.

Ankara has demanded the Syrian Kurdish fighters disband, and has called on Washington to withdraw its support. The US military acknowledged last week it has 2,000 troops on the ground in Syria, twice as many as it had said previously.

On Saturday, Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said Türkiye would do "whatever it takes" to ensure its security if Syria's new administration was unable to address its concerns.