Arab League Calls for Immediate Ceasefire in Sudan

Arab League foreign ministers meet during an annual meeting in Cairo, Egypt. AP
Arab League foreign ministers meet during an annual meeting in Cairo, Egypt. AP
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Arab League Calls for Immediate Ceasefire in Sudan

Arab League foreign ministers meet during an annual meeting in Cairo, Egypt. AP
Arab League foreign ministers meet during an annual meeting in Cairo, Egypt. AP

The Arab League on Sunday called for a ceasefire in Sudan, urging the Arab ambassadors in Khartoum to act for the restoration of stability by contacting all parties.

The League expressed deep regret for the casualties in the clashes and extended sincere condolences to the victims’ families as well as the Sudanese people.

In a final statement issued after an emergency meeting on Sunday to discuss the recent developments in the country upon an invitation by Saudi Arabia and Egypt, the Arab League stressed the necessity of an "immediate ceasefire … to protect the civilians and the territorial integrity and sovereignty of Sudan."

The meeting was held at the level of permanent representatives.

The League also emphasized the need for a return to peaceful negotiations and to "establish a new phase that fulfills the ambitions of the brotherly Sudanese people and contributes to reinforcing political and economic security and stability.”

It warned of serious repercussions of the violent escalation in Sudan, "the scope of which is difficult to determine internally and regionally."

The organization said it is ready "to exert efforts to help Sudan end the crisis in a sustainable manner, in a way that serves the interest of the Sudanese people." It further expressed readiness to closely monitor the Sudanese developments and to intensify Arab calls to end the crisis.

The League, at the level of permanent representatives, is in "permanent session to follow up the developments in Sudan,” it said.

It invited all Arab ambassadors in Khartoum to coordinate with each other and establish consistent communication with the Sudanese authorities and all relevant parties to provide the necessary support for the restoration of stability.

It further called on the ambassadors to coordinate with the General Secretariat and the State President of the Council at the ministerial level (Egypt).

Concluding the statement, the League called on Secretary-General of the Arab League Ahmed Aboul Gheit to take necessary measures to implement the statement.



Five ISIS Bombs Found Hidden in Iconic Mosul Mosque in Iraq

(FILES) This picture taken on January 18, 2022 shows renovations at the al-Nuri mosque in the old town of Iraq's northern city Mosul. (Photo by Zaid AL-OBEIDI / AFP)
(FILES) This picture taken on January 18, 2022 shows renovations at the al-Nuri mosque in the old town of Iraq's northern city Mosul. (Photo by Zaid AL-OBEIDI / AFP)
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Five ISIS Bombs Found Hidden in Iconic Mosul Mosque in Iraq

(FILES) This picture taken on January 18, 2022 shows renovations at the al-Nuri mosque in the old town of Iraq's northern city Mosul. (Photo by Zaid AL-OBEIDI / AFP)
(FILES) This picture taken on January 18, 2022 shows renovations at the al-Nuri mosque in the old town of Iraq's northern city Mosul. (Photo by Zaid AL-OBEIDI / AFP)

A United Nations agency said it has discovered five bombs in a wall of Mosul's iconic Al-Nuri mosque, planted years ago by ISIS militants, during restoration work in the northern Iraqi city.

Five "large-scale explosive devices, designed to trigger a massive destruction of the site," were found in the southern wall of the prayer hall on Tuesday by the UNESCO team working at the site, a representative for the agency told AFP late Friday.

Mosul's Al-Nuri mosque and the adjacent leaning minaret nicknamed Al-Hadba or the "hunchback", which dates from the 12th century, were destroyed during the battle to retake the city from ISIS.

Iraq's army accused ISIS, which occupied Mosul for three years, of planting explosives at the site and blowing it up.

UNESCO, the UN cultural agency, has been working to restore the mosque and other architectural heritage sites in the city, much of it reduced to rubble in the battle to retake it in 2017.

"The Iraqi armed forces immediately secured the area and the situation is now fully under control," UNESCO added.

One bomb was removed, but four other 1.5-kilogram devices "remain connected to each other" and are expected to be cleared in the coming days, it said.

"These explosive devices were hidden inside a wall, which was specially rebuilt around them: it explains why they could not be discovered when the site was cleared by Iraqi forces" in 2020, the agency said.

Iraqi General Tahseen al-Khafaji, spokesperson for the Joint Operations Command of various Iraqi forces, confirmed the discovery of "several explosive devices from ISIS militants in Al-Nuri mosque."

He said provincial deminers requested help from the Defense Ministry in Baghdad to defuse the remaining munitions because of their "complex manufacturing".

Construction work has been suspended at the site until the bombs are removed.

It was from Al-Nuri mosque that Abu Bakr Al-Baghdadi, the then-leader of ISIS, proclaimed the establishment of the group's "caliphate" in July 2014.