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Sudan PM Asks FDFC to Name Candidates for Government

Sudanese demonstrators chant slogans in front of security forces during a protest in Khartoum, Sudan. (Reuters)
Sudanese demonstrators chant slogans in front of security forces during a protest in Khartoum, Sudan. (Reuters)
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Sudan PM Asks FDFC to Name Candidates for Government

Sudanese demonstrators chant slogans in front of security forces during a protest in Khartoum, Sudan. (Reuters)
Sudanese demonstrators chant slogans in front of security forces during a protest in Khartoum, Sudan. (Reuters)

Sudan's new Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok asked the Forces of Declaration of Freedom and Change (FDFC) to speed up the nomination of their candidates for the government.

The FDFC is expected to hand its list of candidates to Hamdok Tuesday, who will select one of three for each ministry, and announce the government on Wednesday in accordance with the timetable agreed upon in the constitutional document.

A meeting held at the Umma Party headquarters in Omdurman will continue until all parties have reached consensus on the candidates for 14 ministries and four specialized councils.

Asharq Al-Awsat learned that the PM pressured the FDFC to complete its nomination, asserting that he will respect the set deadline.

A top commander in the Forces, who asked not to be named, said the FDFC selected five candidates for the cabinet.

The source told Asharq Al-Awsat that FDFC are committed to delivering the names of their candidates to the prime minister on time, ahead of the official announcement of the government.

Asharq Al-Awsat obtained the names of candidates for all the ministries in the transitional government with candidates of the Foreign Ministry including: Omar Mohammed Kamareddine, Omar Bashir Munis and Mohammed Ahmed Siddiq.

The most prominent candidates for the Ministry of Finance are: Ibrahim al-Badawi, Hassan Bashir and Mohammed Sheikhoun. As for the Ministry of Industry and Trade, Bakri Ali Ahmed, Kawther Ismail Mahmoud, Kamaluddin Tayeb and Issa Shater were nominated.

Four candidates are competing for the Ministry of Energy and Mining: Saleh Mirghani, Fadl Ahmed Abu Shouk, Awad Jar al-Khair, Adel Ibrahim and Abdel Haj Suleiman.

Candidates for the Ministry of Justice are: member of the Legal Committee of the FDFC Ibtisam al-Sanhouri, Othman Mohammed al-Hasan, Nasereddine Abd al-Bari and Hanoud Abia Kedouf.

Among the most prominent candidates for government affairs: Madani Abbas Madani, Yasser Mirghani Abdel Rahman, Abu Bakr Basha and Ismail Wadi.

Several candidates were named for the Ministry of Education, including: Mohamed el-Amin el-Tom, Mohamed Ibrahim, Taher Abdullah Kamar and Amna al-Sadiq Badri.

Ministry of Health nominees include Akram el-Tom, El-Tayeb Gadin, Samia Abdel Azim and Abdel Rahim Mohamed Ali.

FDFC also chose a list of candidates for the Higher Education Council, most notably philosophy professor at the Sudanese universities, Hisham Omar al-Nur, Ahmed Hassan al-Jack, Sami Sharif and Suleiman Dablo.

Four candidates are nominated for the position of Minister of Animal Resources, namely Amal Omar Bakheet, Shadia al-Llazem, Hanan Abdel Mawla and Mohammed Fadl Ahmed.

The FDFC named Mohammed Jafar Quraish, Majid Talaat Farid, Mahjoub Said and Walaa Issam al-Boushi for the Ministry of Youth and Sports.

A large number of candidates of political parties withdrew their candidacies after officials pressured them to adhere to the agreement to form an independent government of non-partisan figures, confirmed sources.

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Arab World

Israel Plans Major Settlement Push Across Occupied West Bank

A photograph taken from a land corridor that Israel plans to use for its controversial E1 settlement project, near the Arab town of al-Tur in Israel-annexed east Jerusalem, shows camels belonging to Bedouins gathered on a hill overlooking the Israeli settlement of Maale Adumim (background) on May 31, 2026. (Photo by AHMAD GHARABLI / AFP)
A photograph taken from a land corridor that Israel plans to use for its controversial E1 settlement project, near the Arab town of al-Tur in Israel-annexed east Jerusalem, shows camels belonging to Bedouins gathered on a hill overlooking the Israeli settlement of Maale Adumim (background) on May 31, 2026. (Photo by AHMAD GHARABLI / AFP)
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Israel Plans Major Settlement Push Across Occupied West Bank

A photograph taken from a land corridor that Israel plans to use for its controversial E1 settlement project, near the Arab town of al-Tur in Israel-annexed east Jerusalem, shows camels belonging to Bedouins gathered on a hill overlooking the Israeli settlement of Maale Adumim (background) on May 31, 2026. (Photo by AHMAD GHARABLI / AFP)
A photograph taken from a land corridor that Israel plans to use for its controversial E1 settlement project, near the Arab town of al-Tur in Israel-annexed east Jerusalem, shows camels belonging to Bedouins gathered on a hill overlooking the Israeli settlement of Maale Adumim (background) on May 31, 2026. (Photo by AHMAD GHARABLI / AFP)

Israel's hardline finance minister announced on Wednesday a major expansion by more than 2,000 homes of three Jewish settlements in the occupied West Bank that Palestinians hope will be part of a future independent state.

Most nations consider Israeli settlements there to be illegal under international law and a major obstacle to a two-state solution for long-term peace.

Bezalel Smotrich, who holds authority over parts of Israel's civilian administration in the West Bank, said a planning committee approved the construction of 2,162 new Jewish homes.

They include 1,006 units in a new settlement near Jerusalem, 922 near the Palestinian city of Nablus and 234 near ⁠Hebron.

"We are continuing ⁠to build the Land of Israel in practice," said Smotrich, an ultranationalist sanctioned by Britain, France and others who accuse him of inciting violence against Palestinians.

Smotrich has denounced the sanctions against him, saying the measures would not change Israeli policy.

The new homes would "strengthen our hold on the land, reinforce Israel's security, and establish clear facts on the ground that prevent the creation of an Arab terror state ⁠in the heart of the country," Smotrich said in a statement, without specifying when construction would begin.

Since becoming a minister three years ago, Smotrich has sought to tighten Israel's control and presence in the West Bank while advocating against the idea of a Palestinian state.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's right-wing government has overseen the significant expansion of Jewish settlements in the West Bank and the establishment of new settlements.

Palestinians want the West Bank as part of a future independent state that includes East Jerusalem and Gaza. Around half a million Israelis live in the West Bank among about 3 million Palestinians.

US President Donald Trump's administration has been ⁠far less critical of ⁠the fast-expanding Israeli settlements.

However, Trump did say last September that he would not allow Israel to annex the West Bank, angering some right-wing Israeli lawmakers.

Condemning Wednesday's announcement, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas' office warned that Israel's "provocative" policies were pushing the region towards more rounds of violence and called on the US to stop the Israeli "madness.”

Smotrich on May 19 said he would wage "war" on the Palestinian Authority, which exercises limited civic rule in the West Bank, after he said he was told the International Criminal Court (ICC) prosecutor had sought a confidential arrest warrant against him. The ICC has not confirmed that.

Arab World

UNIFIL Peacekeeper Killed in South Lebanon

A United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) convoy maneuvers within southern Lebanon, as seen from the Israeli side of the border in the Upper Galilee, northern Israel, 02 June 2026, amid a ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah. EPA/ATEF SAFADI
A United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) convoy maneuvers within southern Lebanon, as seen from the Israeli side of the border in the Upper Galilee, northern Israel, 02 June 2026, amid a ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah. EPA/ATEF SAFADI
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UNIFIL Peacekeeper Killed in South Lebanon

A United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) convoy maneuvers within southern Lebanon, as seen from the Israeli side of the border in the Upper Galilee, northern Israel, 02 June 2026, amid a ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah. EPA/ATEF SAFADI
A United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) convoy maneuvers within southern Lebanon, as seen from the Israeli side of the border in the Upper Galilee, northern Israel, 02 June 2026, amid a ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah. EPA/ATEF SAFADI

The United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon said Thursday that a peacekeeper was killed and two others wounded when shelling hit their base in the country's south the previous night.

"A UNIFIL peacekeeper died early this morning from critical injuries sustained when mortar shells struck his position," a statement from the force said, adding that an investigation had been launched.

The peacekeeper was Serbian, the country's defense ministry confirmed on Thursday, specifying that he died from injuries caused by a missile strike on the UN base.

"Senior Sergeant Milovan Jovanovic was given emergency medical care at a hospital inside the base after being wounded and then transported by helicopter to the University Medical Center in Beirut, where he died," the statement said.
 

 

Arab World

Lebanon-Israel Ceasefire Deal: Complete Cessation of Hezbollah Attacks, Creation of Pilot Zones

(L/R) Israel's Ambassador to the US Yechiel Leiter, State Department Chief of Staff Daniel Holler, US Ambassador to Lebanon Michel Issa and Lebanese Ambassador to the US Nada Hamadeh attend a meeting between Israeli and Lebanese delegations hosted by the United States at the State Department in Washington, DC, on June 3, 2026. (Photo by Oliver Contreras / AFP)
(L/R) Israel's Ambassador to the US Yechiel Leiter, State Department Chief of Staff Daniel Holler, US Ambassador to Lebanon Michel Issa and Lebanese Ambassador to the US Nada Hamadeh attend a meeting between Israeli and Lebanese delegations hosted by the United States at the State Department in Washington, DC, on June 3, 2026. (Photo by Oliver Contreras / AFP)
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Lebanon-Israel Ceasefire Deal: Complete Cessation of Hezbollah Attacks, Creation of Pilot Zones

(L/R) Israel's Ambassador to the US Yechiel Leiter, State Department Chief of Staff Daniel Holler, US Ambassador to Lebanon Michel Issa and Lebanese Ambassador to the US Nada Hamadeh attend a meeting between Israeli and Lebanese delegations hosted by the United States at the State Department in Washington, DC, on June 3, 2026. (Photo by Oliver Contreras / AFP)
(L/R) Israel's Ambassador to the US Yechiel Leiter, State Department Chief of Staff Daniel Holler, US Ambassador to Lebanon Michel Issa and Lebanese Ambassador to the US Nada Hamadeh attend a meeting between Israeli and Lebanese delegations hosted by the United States at the State Department in Washington, DC, on June 3, 2026. (Photo by Oliver Contreras / AFP)

Israel and Lebanon on Wednesday agreed to a new ceasefire following talks mediated by the United States. Under the agreement, Hezbollah is to stop all attacks on Israel and withdraw its fighters from the area south of the Litani River in southern Lebanon.

In a joint statement, the US, Israel and Lebanon said “the ceasefire is contingent on a complete cessation of Hezbollah fire and the evacuation of all Hezbollah operatives from the South Litani Sector.”

Israel and Lebanon agreed with US guidance “to swiftly advance the creation of pilot zones” in which the Lebanese army “will take exclusive control of the territory to the exclusion of all non-state actors.”

“These steps will enable progress towards a comprehensive peace and security agreement,” the statement said, adding that both sides “rejected any attempt, by any state or non-state actor, to hold Lebanon’s future hostage.”

Hezbollah has yet to comment on the ceasefire. Before it was announced, the group said it had conducted two drone and rocket attacks on Israeli troops inside Lebanon that it said took place just after midnight local time on Wednesday.

In their statement, “Israel and Lebanon reaffirmed that they have no hostile intent toward one another and committed to continuing direct negotiations to build confidence, resolve all outstanding issues, and work toward a comprehensive agreement between the two countries.”

The US reaffirmed that any agreement to cease hostilities must be reached directly between the two governments, brokered by Washington, and not through any separate track.

As for Israel, it said that its security and respect for its territorial integrity can only be achieved through Hezbollah’s disarmament and the dismantlement of its infrastructure across Lebanon.

In the statement, “Lebanon reaffirmed the necessity for mutual respect of internationally recognized borders, the urgent need for full implementation of the cessation of hostilities, underscoring the principles of territorial integrity and full state sovereignty.”

It stressed commitment to enhancing the capacity of the Lebanese army, with US support, to assert effective control across the country.