UN Plans to Aid 3 Million Sudanese Refugees

Displaced people from el-Geneina in Darfur on a French army truck en route to temporary shelters on the outskirts of Adre, Chad (Reuters)
Displaced people from el-Geneina in Darfur on a French army truck en route to temporary shelters on the outskirts of Adre, Chad (Reuters)
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UN Plans to Aid 3 Million Sudanese Refugees

Displaced people from el-Geneina in Darfur on a French army truck en route to temporary shelters on the outskirts of Adre, Chad (Reuters)
Displaced people from el-Geneina in Darfur on a French army truck en route to temporary shelters on the outskirts of Adre, Chad (Reuters)

The United Nations has recognized the need to scale up assistance in Sudan, according to the United Nations Integrated Transition Support Mission in Sudan (UNITAMS).

The UN agencies in Sudan held a meeting Wednesday in Port Sudan, announcing they are jointly mounting efforts to scale up humanitarian assistance for over three million displaced by the conflict, the majority being women and children.

A UN report issued in mid-July indicated that roughly half of Sudan's population needs urgent humanitarian aid, especially the millions trapped in combat zones in Khartoum, Darfur, and Kordofan.

The ongoing clashes between the Sudanese Army and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) impede the delivery of humanitarian aid to civilians, as they continue to lose the necessary services, including electricity, water supply, and health care after more than half of the hospitals and service facilities became out of service.

The battles stopped Wednesday, and a state of cautious calm prevailed in Khartoum, Omdurman, and Bahri, which witnessed violent and bloody clashes in the past days between the two parties, killing dozens of civilians and injuring many others.

Residents of separate suburbs of Khartoum told Asharq Al-Awsat that calm has returned to their areas, and there have been no gunfights.

Al-Rih al-Hindi, a resident of the al-Manshia suburb east of Khartoum, said that the clashes have subsided, but the Rapid Support forces are still deployed in many neighborhoods.

He indicated that the past days were challenging, and many homes were damaged due to artillery shelling and airstrikes.

Hindi noted that most neighborhoods east of Khartoum have become almost empty, except for a few families who decided to stay.

Another resident, Sarah Omar al-Sayed, said that the situation has calmed down significantly, adding that they have not seen any army planes or heard clashes.

She indicated that her family is considering leaving the house when it is safe.

According to UN data, supported by reports from the Sudanese Federal Ministry of Health, more than 1,136 people have been killed and 120,000 injured since the outbreak of fighting last April.

Meanwhile, the Deputy Chairman of the Transitional Sovereignty Council (TSC), Malik Agar, said there was hope to end the war in the country, adding that some military-technical measures must precede the ceasefire according to monitoring mechanisms.

Agar explained in an interview with state television on Wednesday that there is no official negotiation between the army and the RSF at the Jeddah platform, noting that despite the presence of the two parties, the talks may be indirect.

He renewed his country's refusal to deploy any foreign forces, which may be met with hostility.



Palestinian President Abbas Appoints New Deputy in Major Step in Naming Successor

Hussein al-Sheikh, secretary-general of the Executive Committee of the Palestine Liberation Organization, gestures during an interview with The Associate Press at his office in the West Bank city of Ramallah, June 13, 2022. (AP)
Hussein al-Sheikh, secretary-general of the Executive Committee of the Palestine Liberation Organization, gestures during an interview with The Associate Press at his office in the West Bank city of Ramallah, June 13, 2022. (AP)
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Palestinian President Abbas Appoints New Deputy in Major Step in Naming Successor

Hussein al-Sheikh, secretary-general of the Executive Committee of the Palestine Liberation Organization, gestures during an interview with The Associate Press at his office in the West Bank city of Ramallah, June 13, 2022. (AP)
Hussein al-Sheikh, secretary-general of the Executive Committee of the Palestine Liberation Organization, gestures during an interview with The Associate Press at his office in the West Bank city of Ramallah, June 13, 2022. (AP)

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas on Saturday named a veteran aide and confidant as his new vice president. It’s a major step by the aging leader to designate a successor.

The appointment of Hussein al-Sheikh as vice president of the Palestine Liberation Organization does not guarantee he will be the next Palestinian president. But it makes him the front-runner among longtime politicians in the dominant Fatah party who hope to succeed the 89-year-old Abbas.

Abbas hopes to play a major role in postwar Gaza. He has been under pressure from Western and Arab allies to rehabilitate the Palestinian Authority, which has limited autonomy in parts of the Israeli-occupied West Bank.  

The PLO is the internationally recognized representative of the Palestinian people and oversees the Western-backed Palestinian Authority. Abbas has led both entities for two decades.