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Sudan: National Congress Party Condemns Authorities' Move to Dissolve It

Thousands of Sudanese rallied late last month in several cities, urging the new authorities to dissolve the former ruling party. AFP
Thousands of Sudanese rallied late last month in several cities, urging the new authorities to dissolve the former ruling party. AFP
    Asharq Al-Awsat
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Sudan: National Congress Party Condemns Authorities' Move to Dissolve It

Thousands of Sudanese rallied late last month in several cities, urging the new authorities to dissolve the former ruling party. AFP
Thousands of Sudanese rallied late last month in several cities, urging the new authorities to dissolve the former ruling party. AFP

Ousted President Omar al-Bashir's party on Friday condemned what it described as new "illegal government" for ordering its closure and the dismantling of the regime.

The National Congress Party accused the authorities of trying to confiscate NCP properties to help tackle Sudan's economic crisis, which it said the new government had failed to tackle.

"To rely on the assets of the party, if there are any, is nothing more than a moral scandal, an act of intellectual bankruptcy and a total failure on the part of the illegal government," the Islamist NCP said on its Facebook page.

Sudan's new authorities ordered earlier on Thursday that the party of Bashir be dissolved and his regime be "dismantled", heeding the call of protesters whose campaign led to the leader's overthrow.

Bashir and his party had ruled the northeast African country since 1989 before a nationwide protest movement resulted in him being deposed earlier this year.

The country's new ruling sovereign council and the cabinet led by Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok made the decision to dissolve the party, approving a law titled "Dismantling of the regime of 30th June 1989," AFP reported.

"The National Congress Party is dissolved and its registration is cancelled from the list of political parties in Sudan," the decree said, adding that a committee would be formed to confiscate all its properties and assets.

"None of the symbols of the regime or party would be allowed to engage in any political activity for 10 years".

The dissolution of the party was "not a revenge" against the country's former rulers, Hamdok wrote on Twitter.

"But it aims to preserve the dignity of Sudanese people which was crushed by dishonest people."

"This law aims to recover the plundered wealth of the people."

Wajdi Salah, a spokesman of the umbrella protest movement Forces of Freedom and Change, said on his Facebook page that the old regime party would be dismantled completely.

The Sudanese Professionals Association, the protest group that had initially led the demonstrations against Bashir, praised the decision to dismantle the former regime.

"It is a major step towards achieving the goal of the revolution and on the path of building a democratic civilian state," the SPA said in a statement.

Thousands of Sudanese rallied late last month in several cities, urging the new authorities to dissolve the former ruling party.

According to AFP, Bashir is being held in a prison in Khartoum facing trial on charges of corruption.

Several other officials of his government and senior party members are also in jail.

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Thomas Barrack: Syria’s Joining Abraham Accords ‘Could Take Time’

HANDOUT - 19 June 2025, Lebanon, Beirut: US Special Envoy to Syria Tom Barrack speaks during a press conference in Beirut. Photo: Hassan Ibrahim/Lebanese Parliament/dpa
HANDOUT - 19 June 2025, Lebanon, Beirut: US Special Envoy to Syria Tom Barrack speaks during a press conference in Beirut. Photo: Hassan Ibrahim/Lebanese Parliament/dpa
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Thomas Barrack: Syria’s Joining Abraham Accords ‘Could Take Time’

HANDOUT - 19 June 2025, Lebanon, Beirut: US Special Envoy to Syria Tom Barrack speaks during a press conference in Beirut. Photo: Hassan Ibrahim/Lebanese Parliament/dpa
HANDOUT - 19 June 2025, Lebanon, Beirut: US Special Envoy to Syria Tom Barrack speaks during a press conference in Beirut. Photo: Hassan Ibrahim/Lebanese Parliament/dpa

Syria and Israel are engaged in “meaningful” talks through the United States that aim to restore calm along their border, according to Thomas Barrack, US President Donald Trump’s envoy to Syria.

Barrack said in an interview with The New York Times on Thursday that the administration wanted Syria to join the Abraham Accords, but “this could take time” because Syria’s new President Ahmed al-Sharaa could face resistance at home.

“He cannot be seen by his own people to be forced or coerced into the Abraham Accords,” Barrack said. “So he has to work slowly.”

Trump tapped Barrack, an old friend and private equity investor, to help realize his vision for the Middle East, which the administration hopes will foster less conflict and more prosperity.

Trump made clear during his Mideast visit in May that lucrative business deals in sectors including arms and artificial intelligence were his priority, and his decision to bomb nuclear enrichment facilities in Iran last month showed his support for Israel and willingness to use force against American foes.

Barrack called the US administration’s approach a departure from previous “failed” American attempts at “nation building” and from past efforts to shape how other governments rule.

Much of Barrack’s work has focused on pushing Syria and Lebanon, both recovering from destructive wars, toward solving their own problems while rallying support from Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Türkiye and other regional partners.

It is unclear whether Trump’s focus on prioritizing economic development over vocal support for democracy will fare better than the efforts of previous administrations to address some of the Middle East’s most bedeviling problems, according to The New York Times.

Barrack, in his first diplomatic job at age 78, has been working his relationships with heads of state and other power brokers. He said that having a direct line to the White House and to Secretary of State Marco Rubio, and the fact that the administration had “little patience for the region’s resistance to helping itself,” had helped.

Much of Barrack’s effort has focused on Syria, where the fledgling government of al-Sharaa is trying to rebuild the country after a 13-year civil war.

Trump signed an executive order this week aimed at ending decades of US sanctions on Syria.

Barrack said that instead of making strict demands, the administration had laid out objectives for the Syrian government to work toward while Washington monitored its progress.

Those indications would include finding a peaceful accommodation with Israel; integrating the US-backed, Kurdish-led militia that controls Syria’s northeast; and investigating the fates of Americans who went missing during the war.

Progress on democratization and inclusive government will not happen quickly, Barrack said, and are not part of the US criteria.

American officials have expressed concerns about the thousands of fighters who came to Syria from abroad to take part in the war, mostly as part of militant groups.

Barrack said Washington realized that Syria could not expel those who remained and that they could pose a threat to the new government if they were excluded. So the Trump administration instead expects transparency about the roles they are given.

Lifting sanctions to encourage changes worked better than keeping them in place until Syria met specific demands, Barrack said.

“It is a brilliant way to accomplish the same thing, and these roll-on, roll-off sanctions have never worked anyway,” he said.

The new Syrian government’s relations have been tense with Israel, whose military has moved into southern Syria and often carried out operations there. The talks aim to quiet the conflict along the border while laying the groundwork for better relations.