Sudan Army Commander Reshuffles Cabinet

Sudan's military leader General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan stands at the podium (File photo: Reuters)
Sudan's military leader General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan stands at the podium (File photo: Reuters)
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Sudan Army Commander Reshuffles Cabinet

Sudan's military leader General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan stands at the podium (File photo: Reuters)
Sudan's military leader General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan stands at the podium (File photo: Reuters)

Sudan's Sovereign Council Chairman Abdel Fattah al-Burhan has reshuffled the cabinet, relieving five ministers of duty.

Burhan decided on Wednesday to terminate the assignment of five ministers, including Minister of Energy and Petroleum, Minister of Trade and Supply, Minister of Transport, Minister of Labor and Administrative Reform, and Minister of Animal Resources.

He then appointed Naeem Mohamed Saeed as the Minister of Energy and Mining, al-Fateh Abdalla Yousif as the Minister of Trade and Supply, Abu Bakr Abu al-Qasim Abdalla as the Minister of Transport, and Ahmed Ali Abdul-Rahman as the Minister of Labor and Administrative Reform, according to the statement.

The leader asked the Peace Parties to the Juba Agreement to nominate a replacement for the Minister of Animal Resources, Hafiz Ibrahim Abdul-Nabi.

It is Burhan's second ministerial change after he seized power in a military coup on October 25, 2021, which ousted Prime Minister Abdel Hamdok and the ministers of the former ruling coalition.

Meanwhile, clashes between the National Army and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), led by Lt-Gen Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, continued, especially in Darfur State.

Earlier, reports claimed Burhan plans to announce a caretaker government based in Port Sudan, which he took as his headquarters after he departed from the headquarters of the Army General Command in the center of Khartoum last August.

He denied the rumors, while Dagalo threatened to announce his cabinet with Khartoum as its capital.

Burhan returned on Tuesday to Omdurman, the second largest city in Khartoum, where he visited the Wadi Seidna Air Base.

The armed forces headed to Jeddah to discuss previous agreements on the withdrawal of the RSF from civilian neighborhoods and government and service facilities, said Burhan.



White House Urges Hamas to Sign on to New Deal to Ensure Hostage Release

Palestinian boys examine a car targeted in an Israeli army strike that killed several of its occupants in Deir al-Balah, central Gaza Strip, Friday, Jan. 3, 2025. (AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana)
Palestinian boys examine a car targeted in an Israeli army strike that killed several of its occupants in Deir al-Balah, central Gaza Strip, Friday, Jan. 3, 2025. (AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana)
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White House Urges Hamas to Sign on to New Deal to Ensure Hostage Release

Palestinian boys examine a car targeted in an Israeli army strike that killed several of its occupants in Deir al-Balah, central Gaza Strip, Friday, Jan. 3, 2025. (AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana)
Palestinian boys examine a car targeted in an Israeli army strike that killed several of its occupants in Deir al-Balah, central Gaza Strip, Friday, Jan. 3, 2025. (AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana)

The Biden administration is urging Hamas to sign on to a new ceasefire deal that would ensure the release of hostages, White House National Security spokesperson John Kirby told reporters on Friday.

Kirby said the White House welcomed Israel's decision to send another team to Doha to continue negotiations.

The United States, Egypt and Qatar have been trying to mediate a deal for a ceasefire and hostage release for a year with no success and are making another push this month before Donald Trump's inauguration.
Ceasefire efforts have continually stumbled on a fundamental disagreement over how to end the conflict. Hamas says it will accept an agreement and release the hostages only if Israel commits to ending the war. Israel says it will agree to stop fighting only once Hamas is destroyed.

On Friday, Hamas said it wanted "a complete ceasefire, the withdrawal of occupation forces from the Gaza Strip" and the return of displaced people to their homes in all areas of the enclave.

US President Joe Biden has repeatedly called for a ceasefire agreement. Trump has said that if there is not a deal to release the hostages before his inauguration, "all hell is going to break out.”