Sudanese Opposition Leader: No Rapprochement with Army's Allies

Protests in Khartoum demanding the return of civilian rule (AP)
Protests in Khartoum demanding the return of civilian rule (AP)
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Sudanese Opposition Leader: No Rapprochement with Army's Allies

Protests in Khartoum demanding the return of civilian rule (AP)
Protests in Khartoum demanding the return of civilian rule (AP)

A leader in the opposition Forces of Freedom and Change coalition in Sudan ruled out any rapprochement with the factions that supported the army's assumption of power last October and overthrew the civilian-led government.

Member of the Central Council of the Forces Sherif Muhammad Othman said that this group disavowed the outcomes of the workshop organized by the Lawyers Association on the conceptual framework of the constitutional declaration.

The Leader of the Umma Party, Maryam al-Mahdi, revealed in recent press statements that the civil forces could soon form a transitional government to end the political stalemate in the country.

Al-Mahdi stated that the forces that will participate in the transitional government include the Forces of Freedom and Change, the Central Council, and the National Accord, which includes armed movements, Popular Resistance Committees, and civil society.

Othman told Asharq Al-Awsat that a consensus could have been reached between the opposition and the forces allied to the army in the National Accord to establish a political agreement.

However, some factions disavowed the outcomes of the workshop in which they participated.

He said that Freedom and Change seek to unite the revolutionary forces within a large bloc that includes resistance committees and civil parties to isolate the military government while maintaining contacts with other forces to agree on the formation of the civilian-led government.

Othman believes the military holding power in the country will not form an executive government after they could not find popular and political support.

"They cannot take this step because these groups supported the coup, including the national consensus forces. They will not form a good political and popular base for governance," said the official, adding that the military component does not want a genuine democratic transition.

The opposition leader stated that the military does not show any willingness to the process of civil democratic transformation.

The Freedom and Change coalition formed a committee to draft the new constitutional declaration, which will be completed soon.

The new constitutional declaration is based on removing the army from political work and the transitional authority, while the National Accord aims to make amendments to the constitutional document to maintain the military as a ruling partner.

Freedom and Change include the National Accord, the Justice and Equality Movement, the Sudan Liberation Army movement, the governor of the Darfur region, and other factions that signed the Juba Peace Agreement.

The factions supported the military measures that overthrew the civilian rule under which the army seized power on October 25.

On July 04, the head of the Transitional Sovereign Council, Lt-Gen Abdul Fattah al-Burhan, announced the withdrawal of the armed forces from the political process led by the UN tripartite mechanism to allow the civil forces to form an independent government.



Blinken Seeks to Avert Syria Turmoil with Europeans on Final Trip

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken (L) met French FM Jean-Noel Barrot in Paris. Ludovic MARIN / POOL/AFP
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken (L) met French FM Jean-Noel Barrot in Paris. Ludovic MARIN / POOL/AFP
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Blinken Seeks to Avert Syria Turmoil with Europeans on Final Trip

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken (L) met French FM Jean-Noel Barrot in Paris. Ludovic MARIN / POOL/AFP
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken (L) met French FM Jean-Noel Barrot in Paris. Ludovic MARIN / POOL/AFP

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken was heading on Thursday to Rome for talks with European counterparts on bringing stability to Syria in the face of flare-ups with Türkiye, capping what is likely his final trip.
Blinken had been expected to remain in Italy through the weekend to join President Joe Biden but the outgoing US leader scrapped his trip, which was to include an audience with Pope Francis, to address wildfires sweeping Los Angeles.
Blinken, on a trip that has taken him to South Korea, Japan and France, was heading on Thursday from Paris and will meet for dinner in Rome with counterparts from Britain, France, Germany and Italy.
In Paris on Wednesday, Blinken said the United States was united with the Europeans on seeking a peaceful, stable Syria, a month after the opposition factions toppled longtime ruler Bashar al-Assad.
But concerns have mounted over Türkiye’s threats against Syrian Kurdish fighters, who have effectively run their own state during the brutal civil war engulfing Syria.
A war monitor said that battles between Turkish-backed groups, supported by air strikes, and Kurdish-led forces killed 37 people on Thursday.
The Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) have worked with the United States on Washington's main stated priority -- battling the ISIS extremist group -- but Türkiye says the SDF has links with PKK militants at home.
Blinken in Paris said that Türkiye had "legitimate concerns" and that the SDF should gradually be integrated into a revamped national army, with foreign fighters removed.
"That's a process that's going to take some time. And in the meantime, what is profoundly not in the interest of everything positive we see happening in Syria would be a conflict," Blinken told reporters.
"We'll work very hard to make sure that that doesn't happen."
Blinken said he expected no change on goals in Syria from US President-elect Donald Trump, who takes over on January 20.
During his last term, Trump briefly said he would accede to a plea by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to pull out US troops that have been working in Syria with the Kurdish forces.
But he backed down after counter-appeals led by French President Emmanuel Macron.
When to ease sanctions?
Also on the agenda in Rome will be whether and when to ease sanctions on Syria.
French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot said on Wednesday that some sanctions "could be lifted quickly".
The US Treasury Department said this week it would ease enforcement on restrictions that affect essential services.
But US officials say they will wait to see progress before any wider easing of sanctions -- and the Biden administration is unlikely in its final days to accept the political costs of removing Syria's victorious Hayat Tahrir al-Sham rebels from the US "terrorism" blacklist.
While Western powers are largely in synch on Syria, some differences remain.
Blinken reiterated US calls on European countries to repatriate citizens of theirs detained in Syria for working with the ISIS group and languishing in vast camps run by the Kurdish fighters.
France and Britain, with painful memories of attacks by homegrown extremists, have little desire to bring militants back.
The Rome talks come a week after the French and German foreign ministers, Jean-Noel Barrot and Annalena Baerbock, jointly visited Damascus and met new leader Ahmed al-Sharaa to encourage an inclusive transition.
Sharaa, has promised to protect minorities after the fall of the iron-fisted but largely secular Assad.
A senior US official in turn said last month on meeting Sharaa that Washington was dropping a $10-million bounty on his head.
Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani will pay his own visit to Syria on Friday, during which he plans to announce an initial development aid package.
Italy's hard-right government has pledged to reduce immigration. Millions of Syrians sought asylum in Europe during the civil war, triggering a backlash in some parts of the continent that shook up European politics.
In contrast to other major European powers, Italy had moved to normalize ties with Assad just weeks before he fell, presuming at the time that he had effectively won the war.