US Ambassador Urges Sudanese Parties to Implement Peace Agreement

Floods in the Nile River State, northern Sudan (AFP)
Floods in the Nile River State, northern Sudan (AFP)
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US Ambassador Urges Sudanese Parties to Implement Peace Agreement

Floods in the Nile River State, northern Sudan (AFP)
Floods in the Nile River State, northern Sudan (AFP)

The US ambassador to Khartoum, John Godfrey, has stressed the importance of taking measures to implement the Juba Peace Agreement, signed between the dismissed Sudanese government and the rebel factions in August 2020.

Godfrey called for putting an end to a decade-long war that claimed the lives of more than 300 people and displaced millions of people.

He said that Washington is looking forward to contributing to building a civil state in Sudan, stressing his country's desire to support the Sudanese people for the success of the democratic transition in the country.

The US embassy said on its official Facebook page that the Ambassador, a delegation from Congress, and a senior USAID official, discussed with the Governor of North Darfur, Nimir Abdelrahman, the security and humanitarian situation in the state.

Local authorities also briefed the Ambassador on the state's challenges and protecting citizens.

The official Sudan News Agency (SUNA) quoted the US ambassador as saying that his talks with the governor dealt with all issues of common concern, including the programs and projects of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID).

Godfrey added that the meeting addressed the Juba Peace Agreement to maintain the understanding between the Sudanese and the US people.

Abdelrahman said in press statements that the visit of the US ambassador to the state was an encouraging step, reiterating that Godfrey's appointment at this stage confirms Washington's determination to develop bilateral relations.

The meeting addressed the requirements for the success of the transitional period, the progress of implementation of the Juba Peace Agreement, and the execution of its protocols related to national issues.

The governor called for concerted efforts to address the challenges facing the deployment of security forces in Darfur to protect civilians.

He also appealed to the international community to provide aid to the people of Darfur without any pre-conditions.

The US delegation is scheduled to conclude its three-day visit to Darfur on Monday.

The peace agreement faces obstacles in financing the implementation of the Security Arrangements Protocol, which provides for the integration and demobilization of armed factions in the Sudanese army.

Parties to the peace agreement also have different viewpoints on the restructuring and reform of the traditional and security agencies.



Toll in Syria Opposition-army Fighting Rises to 242

Fighters from Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) ride in military vehicles in the eastern outskirts of the town of Atarib, in Syria's northern province of Aleppo on November 27, 2024, during clashes with the Syrian army. (Photo by Abdulaziz KETAZ / AFP)
Fighters from Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) ride in military vehicles in the eastern outskirts of the town of Atarib, in Syria's northern province of Aleppo on November 27, 2024, during clashes with the Syrian army. (Photo by Abdulaziz KETAZ / AFP)
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Toll in Syria Opposition-army Fighting Rises to 242

Fighters from Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) ride in military vehicles in the eastern outskirts of the town of Atarib, in Syria's northern province of Aleppo on November 27, 2024, during clashes with the Syrian army. (Photo by Abdulaziz KETAZ / AFP)
Fighters from Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) ride in military vehicles in the eastern outskirts of the town of Atarib, in Syria's northern province of Aleppo on November 27, 2024, during clashes with the Syrian army. (Photo by Abdulaziz KETAZ / AFP)

More than 240 people, mostly combatants, were killed as intense fighting approached Syria's northern Aleppo city after the opposition launched a major offensive on government-held areas this week, a monitor said Friday.
On Wednesday, Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) and allied Turkish-backed factions launched an attack on government-held areas in the northwest, triggering the fiercest fighting since 2020, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.
Rami Abdel Rahman, who heads the Observatory, said fighting reached two kilometers (1.2 miles) from the main northern city of Aleppo, where the group’s artillery shelling on student housing killed four civilians, according to state media.
"The combatants' death toll in the ongoing... operation in the Idlib and Aleppo countrysides has risen to 218," since Wednesday, said the British-based monitor with a network of sources inside Syria.
In addition to the fighters, it said 24 civilians were killed.
Syrian ally Russia launched air strikes that killed 19 civilians on Thursday, while another civilian had been killed in Syrian army shelling a day earlier, said the Observatory which on Thursday had reported an overall toll of about 200 dead, including the civilians.