Bashir's Supporters Warn Burhan, Demand Expelling UN Envoy in Sudan

Broad Islamic Trend protests in Khartoum (AFP)
Broad Islamic Trend protests in Khartoum (AFP)
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Bashir's Supporters Warn Burhan, Demand Expelling UN Envoy in Sudan

Broad Islamic Trend protests in Khartoum (AFP)
Broad Islamic Trend protests in Khartoum (AFP)

Several thousand supporters of the ousted Sudanese President , Omar al-Bashir, and the disbanded National Congress Party (NCP) gathered outside the UN Integrated Transition Mission in Sudan (UNITAMS) headquarters, demanding the expulsion of its president Volker Perthes.

They warned the head of the Sovereign Council, Lt-Gen Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, against signing a prospective bilateral settlement with the "Freedom and Change" opposition coalition, according to a consensus draft constitution.

About 4,000 Muslim Brotherhood supporters affiliated with the Broad Islamic Trend and the initiative of religious leader al-Tayeb al-Jid, gathered outside the mission's headquarters to protest foreign interference in the country's internal affairs.

They waved banners against foreign intervention and the QUAD mechanism, which includes the US, UK, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates.

The protesters also claimed that the draft constitution prepared by the Bar Association and agreed upon by various political forces is imported and imposed on the Sudanese.

Speakers at the protest threatened the head of the UN mission and demanded he leaves the country. One speaker warned Burhan against signing a bilateral agreement with the opposition coalition and demanded he resigns.

Meanwhile, police forces stationed near the road entrance leading to UNITMAS headquarters closed the road from both sides. They allowed the protesters, who came by bus, to reach the place without any obstacles, unlike other opposition protests who faced violence.

Participants at the protest announced the Broad Islamic Trend readiness, along with the capital residents, to completely cordon Khartoum if any settlement is declared between the Freedom and Change alliance and the military component.

Broad Islamic Trend includes ten factions that signed a charter in April to create organizational integration.

Since October 2021, hundreds of thousands of protesters demanded the return of the civilian transition, which prevented the military leadership from implementing its pledges.

Last July, Burhan announced the withdrawal of the armed forces from the political process and called on civilians to agree on the formation of a civilian government, which the opposition and the civil movement considered a "maneuver" to stay in power.

The Islamist demonstrations come against the backdrop of the announcement that an agreement will be reached between Freedom and Change and the military to form a civilian government. They also agreed that Burhan and his deputy would be members of the Security and Defense Council headed by the Prime Minister.

The Islamists considered the agreement a reversion to the military's position, threatening their existence and privileges.

The Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) welcomed the measures taken by the competent authorities to secure the October 29 demonstrations and demanded that everyone be granted the right to peaceful assembly without exception or discrimination.

In a statement obtained by Asharq Al-Awsat, OHCHR praised the measures, including ensuring the flow of traffic in Khartoum and access to the Internet.

It condemned the ongoing hate speech and warned against threatening international public figures, saying it is a crime under international humanitarian law.

The Commission considered the threats against Perthes a crime and called on the government to take the necessary measures to stop such rhetoric and hold the perpetrators accountable.



Israel Military Says Soldier Killed in Gaza 

A drone view shows the destruction in a residential neighborhood, after the withdrawal of the Israeli forces from the area, amid a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas in Gaza, in Gaza City, October 21, 2025. (Reuters)
A drone view shows the destruction in a residential neighborhood, after the withdrawal of the Israeli forces from the area, amid a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas in Gaza, in Gaza City, October 21, 2025. (Reuters)
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Israel Military Says Soldier Killed in Gaza 

A drone view shows the destruction in a residential neighborhood, after the withdrawal of the Israeli forces from the area, amid a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas in Gaza, in Gaza City, October 21, 2025. (Reuters)
A drone view shows the destruction in a residential neighborhood, after the withdrawal of the Israeli forces from the area, amid a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas in Gaza, in Gaza City, October 21, 2025. (Reuters)

The Israeli military announced that one of its soldiers had been killed in combat in southern Gaza on Wednesday, but a security source said the death appeared to have been caused by "friendly fire".

"Staff Sergeant Ofri Yafe, aged 21, from HaYogev, a soldier in the Paratroopers Reconnaissance Unit, fell during combat in the southern Gaza Strip," the military said in a statement.

A security source, however, told AFP that the soldier appeared to have been "killed by friendly fire", without providing further details.

"The incident is still under investigation," the source added.

The death brings to five the number of Israeli soldiers killed in Gaza since a ceasefire took effect on October 10.


Syria: SDF’s Mazloum Abdi Says Implementation of Integration Deal May Take Time

People sit outdoors surrounded by nature, with the Tigris river flowing in the background, following a long atmospheric depression, near the Syrian-Turkish border in Derik, Syria, February 16, 2026 REUTERS/Orhan Qereman
People sit outdoors surrounded by nature, with the Tigris river flowing in the background, following a long atmospheric depression, near the Syrian-Turkish border in Derik, Syria, February 16, 2026 REUTERS/Orhan Qereman
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Syria: SDF’s Mazloum Abdi Says Implementation of Integration Deal May Take Time

People sit outdoors surrounded by nature, with the Tigris river flowing in the background, following a long atmospheric depression, near the Syrian-Turkish border in Derik, Syria, February 16, 2026 REUTERS/Orhan Qereman
People sit outdoors surrounded by nature, with the Tigris river flowing in the background, following a long atmospheric depression, near the Syrian-Turkish border in Derik, Syria, February 16, 2026 REUTERS/Orhan Qereman

Mazloum Abdi, commander of the Syrian Democratic Forces, said the process of merging the SDF with Syrian government forces “may take some time,” despite expressing confidence in the eventual success of the agreement.

His remarks came after earlier comments in which he acknowledged differences with Damascus over the concept of “decentralization.”

Speaking at a tribal conference in the northeastern city of Hasakah on Tuesday, Abdi said the issue of integration would not be resolved quickly, but stressed that the agreement remains on track.

He said the deal reached last month stipulates that three Syrian army brigades will be created out of the SDF.

Abdi added that all SDF military units have withdrawn to their barracks in an effort to preserve stability and continue implementing the announced integration agreement with the Syrian state.

He also emphasized the need for armed forces to withdraw from the vicinity of the city of Ayn al-Arab (Kobani), to be replaced by security forces tasked with maintaining order.


Israeli Far-Right Minister to Push for ‘Migration’ of West Bank, Gaza Palestinians 

A Palestinian man checks leather belts as people prepare for Ramadan, in the old city of Hebron in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, February 17,2026. (Reuters)
A Palestinian man checks leather belts as people prepare for Ramadan, in the old city of Hebron in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, February 17,2026. (Reuters)
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Israeli Far-Right Minister to Push for ‘Migration’ of West Bank, Gaza Palestinians 

A Palestinian man checks leather belts as people prepare for Ramadan, in the old city of Hebron in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, February 17,2026. (Reuters)
A Palestinian man checks leather belts as people prepare for Ramadan, in the old city of Hebron in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, February 17,2026. (Reuters)

Israel's far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich said he would pursue a policy of "encouraging the migration" of Palestinians from the occupied West Bank and Gaza Strip, Israeli media reported Wednesday.

"We will eliminate the idea of an Arab terror state," said Smotrich, speaking at an event organized by his Religious Zionism Party late on Tuesday.

"We will finally, formally, and in practical terms nullify the cursed Oslo Accords and embark on a path toward sovereignty, while encouraging emigration from both Gaza and Judea and Samaria.

"There is no other long-term solution," added Smotrich, who himself lives in a settlement in the West Bank.

Since last week, Israel has approved a series of measures backed by far-right ministers to tighten control over the West Bank, including in areas administered by the Palestinian Authority under the Oslo Accords, in place since the 1990s.

The measures include a process to register land in the West Bank as "state property" and facilitate direct purchases of land by Jewish Israelis.

The measures have triggered widespread international outrage.

On Tuesday, the UN missions of 85 countries condemned the measures, which critics say amount to de facto annexation of the Palestinian territory.

"We strongly condemn unilateral Israeli decisions and measures aimed at expanding Israel's unlawful presence in the West Bank," they said in a statement.

"Such decisions are contrary to Israel's obligations under international law and must be immediately reversed.

"We underline in this regard our strong opposition to any form of annexation."

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Monday called on Israel to reverse its land registration policy, calling it "destabilizing" and "unlawful".

The West Bank would form the largest part of any future Palestinian state. Many on Israel's religious right view it as Israeli land.

Israeli NGOs have also raised the alarm over a settlement plan signed by the government which they say would mark the first expansion of Jerusalem's borders into the occupied West Bank since 1967.

The planned development, announced by Israel's Ministry of Construction and Housing, is formally a westward expansion of the Geva Binyamin, or Adam, settlement situated northeast of Jerusalem in the West Bank.

The current Israeli government has fast-tracked settlement expansion, approving a record 52 settlements in 2025.

Excluding Israeli-annexed east Jerusalem, more than 500,000 Israelis live in West Bank settlements and outposts, which are illegal under international law.