A weekly Roundup from Peace Direct (www.peacedirect.org)
News Roundup:
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Sudan says it has “fundamental reservations” on talks with South Sudan over unresolved issues proposed by the African Union. South Sudan has said it seeks peace at “any cost”, and is offering “billions of dollars” to Sudan in return for giving up claims to Abyei and settling all unresolved issues since independence.
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Peace talks between South Sudan and rebels led by George Athor broke down last week.
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South Sudan has accused Khartoum of using artillery to support a cross-border attack by rebels into Upper Nile State.
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Sudan published statements, allegedly from an officer in the South Sudanese Armed Forces, which, Sudan claims, shows South Sudan’s support to rebels in South Kordofan.
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The UNHCR has said landmines and poor weather are preventing plans to move refugees away from the border regions. Hundreds of refugees in the Yida camp have protested against UN ‘inaction’ following the bombing of the camp two weeks ago by the Sudanese air force.
News in Detail
South Sudan
Sudan Tribune: Unknown armed group attack Jonglei’s Pigi County
16 Nov: Unknown gunmen attacked Door, Wunkiir-Anyang and Aluei villages in Pigi County in northern Jonglei, and, according to local sources, were looting property and setting houses on fire. Read more
Reuters: South Sudan says Khartoum backing rebels with artillery
18 Nov: South Sudan accused Sudan of supplying artillery to support a cross-border attack by “mercenaries” on its oil-producing Upper Nile state a day earlier, and called on the United Nations to investigate. Read more
Reuters: South Sudan to revamp factories shuttered by war: official
18 Nov: South Sudan plans to invite investors to revamp about eight food, cement and textile plants shut down during a decade-long civil war, in a push to create jobs and reduce dependence on imports, said an investment official. Read more
Reuters: South Sudan rulers must trim “huge” government: opposition
18 Nov: South Sudan’s main opposition leader called for the dominant ruling party to reduce the size of the country’s “huge” government and said it had not done enough to plan for a rapid decline of oil revenues in the coming years. Read more
AFP: South Sudan rebel leader vows more war after talks fail
20 Nov: South Sudan rebel chief, George Athor, vowed to continue battling the government in Juba and demanded new elections to end his bloody war. Read more
North-South Relations
Sudan Tribune: Sudan accuses South of seizing Sudapet’s shares
17 Nov: The Sudanese government blasted what it claimed was a decision by South Sudanese President, Salva Kiir, to confiscate shares of its state oil firm, Sudapet. Read more
AFP: Sudan has “fundamental reservations” on talks with South
17 Nov: Sudan’s foreign ministry says the government has “fundamental reservations” with African Union proposals on key unresolved issues with the South, but it is not refusing to negotiate. Read more
Reuters: South Sudan offers billions of dollars to settle Sudan disputes
19 Nov: South Sudan is offering Khartoum “billions of dollars” if it agrees to settle all bilateral disputes and gives up claims to the contested oil-producing Abyei region, said a top government official. Read more
AFP: South Sudan says committed to peace with North
19 Nov: Newly independent South Sudan says it will avoid war with Khartoum “at any cost” and press on with negotiations on disputes outstanding since independence in July. Read more
Bloomberg: Sudan to start talks with South over disputed Abyei border
20 Nov: Sudan will start talks tomorrow with South Sudan over the disputed region of Abyei and parts of their shared border that are not properly demarcated, says Khartoum-based Foreign Ministry spokesman, Al-Obaid Murawih. Read more
North Sudan
Reuters: Sudan candidate for next Arab revolution: opposition
14 Nov: Sudan could see the next Arab revolution because anger is rising over an economic crisis and government repression worse than in Egypt before the ousting of Hosni Mubarak, said an opposition leader on Monday. Read more
Sudan Tribune: Sudan downplays report of new ICC warrant, suggesting it is not Darfur related
16 Nov: The Sudanese government downplayed reports that the prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC) will soon file a new case with the judges against Defence Minister Abdel-Rahim Mohamed Hussein. Read more
AFP: Sudanese displaced by Nile dam stage sit-in
20 Nov: Around 1,000 people displaced by Sudan’s vast Merowe dam staged a sit-in on Sunday in protest at the government’s failure to compensate them as promised, said their spokesman. Read more
Darfur, Blue Nile and South Kordofan
Sudan Tribune: Khartoum: SPLA officer confessed South Sudan support to the rebels
14 Nov: A Sudanese official agency today published statements attributed to an officer allegedly a member of the South Sudan army (SPLA), describing how they transfer ammunition and logistical support to the rebels in South Kordofan. Read more
Reuters: Sudan rebel alliance is “counterproductive” - UN
16 Nov: The chief of UN peacekeeping condemned an alliance between rebels in Sudan’s conflict-torn Darfur region and southern border states, saying it was counterproductive and would spark more violence. Read more
Reuters: Sudanese refugees at risk in unsafe border areas - UN
18 Nov: The UN reports that landmines and heavy rain are hampering plans to move Sudanese refugees deeper into South Sudan and away from the volatile border area where they are at risk. Read more
AFP: Sudan’s Nuba refugees protest UN ‘inaction’
18 Nov: Hundreds of Sudanese refugees staged demonstrations on Thursday at the lack of UN protection and humanitarian assistance at a camp in South Sudan that was bombed last week. Read more
LRA
AFP: US military in Central Africa ahead of rebel hunt
17 Nov: US military personnel deployed to help track down Lord’s Resistance Army rebels have met officials in the Central African Republic to co-ordinate an impending operation, a source told AFP on Thursday. Read more
