Justice and Equality Movement leader killed

Khalil Ibrahim, leader of the Justice and Equality Movement

A spokesman for the Darfur rebel group, Justice and Equality Movement or JEM, confirmed yesterday their leader Khalil Ibrahim died of wounds sustained in an air strike last Thursday. 

JEM boycotted a peace agreement signed by the Sudanese government and other insurgent rebel groups last year in Doha, Qatar; last month they signed a cooperation agreement with three other rebel groups vowing to overthrow the Khartoum based government of Omar al-Bashir. Sudan's information minister, Abdullah Masser, said Ibrahim's death sends a message to other rebel groups "to listen to the voices of wisdom and join the peace process"

Ibrahim had reportedly only recently returned to Sudan, previously being in exile in Libya. It's understood JEM was attempting to regroup and reorganise, following the death of their generous patron Muammar Gadaffi. A security officer with the UN mission in Darfur (Unamid) says the group has mostly operated out of North Kordofan state in recent times and has ceased to have an official presence in Darfur. 

Sudan Police crackdown on Student Protests

Up to 16,000 students staged a sit-in protest at the University of Khartoum on Sunday, December 25th. The students were protesting police violence and demanding the overthrow of both the university administration and the Sudanese government.

Clashes between students and police began earlier in the week when up to 700 students staged a smaller protest in support of people displaced by the construction of the Merowe Dam. Police entered the campus on Thursday and used batons and tear gas to disperse the students; the sit-in began on Saturday and was violently broken up the following day, with the arrest of over 70 students.

What's happening in the rest of Sudan?

What's going on outside of South Kordofan? Plenty. Yesterday, Sudanese anti-riot police broke up a demonstration protesting the construction of an up-country dam; Rebel leader George Athor, South Sudan's most high profile rebel leader, was killed by South Sudan's military near the border with the Democratic Republic of Congo and African Union mediators have announced Sudan and South Sudan will resume negotiations in January, aimed at resolving their dispute over ownership of oil reserves.

George Athor has led an independent rebel group, South Sudan's Democratic Movement/Army (SSDMA) against the new government in Juba, after splitting from the SPLA in 2010. An SSDMA spokesman refuted the version of events announced by a government spokesman, claiming instead that the Ugandan government had a hand in the killing.

George Athor, South Sudan rebel leader

On Tuesday, a number of youth affiliated to the Al-Manasir tribal group in Northern Sudan thronged the main bus station in central Khartoum, in protest at what they claim has been the forced displacement of over 100,000 people without adaquete compensation, to facilitate the construction of a Chinese- built dam. 

   

Community leaders claim that 90% of the promised compensation has not yet been received; the Merowe Dam was financed by China, the Arab Fund for Social & Economical Development,  the Saudi Fund for Development and other Arab funds. The project has been marred by reports of human rights abuse since it's inception in 2003. Human Rights Organisation claim members of communities opposed to the dam's construction have been detained, tortured and even killed. Tuesday's protest was forcibly broken p by riot police with tear gas and a number of people were arrested.

In other news and perhaps significantly for South Kordofan, the Sudanese Armed Forces today reiterated their commitment to withdrawing from the disputed border region of Abyei. A force of over 4,000 Ethiopian troops is due to arrive in the region in the coming days as part of a new United Nations peacekeeping force, the UN Interim Security Force for Abyei (UNISFA). 

Earlier this week, the government in Khartoum arrested a senior opposition politician, upon his return from a trip abroad. The Popular Congress Party's (PCP) political Secretary General, Kamal Omer,announced that the party's organisational communications officer Ibrahim al-Sanousi was arrested on Monday at Khartoum Airport by members of the National Intelligence and Security Services (NISS).  

Ibrahim al-Sanousi

The PCP is led by Islamist figure Hassan al-Turabi, who engineered the 1989 coup which delivered power to Omer Hassan al-Bashir. The two later fell out in the 90s and al-Turabi became a fierce critic of the Khartoum based government. 

The Sudan tribune reports an opposition source as suggesting that the Sudanese authorities are concerned the PCP may be collaborating with the Kadua alliance, a newly formed rebel alliance aimed at toppling the government in Khartoum. 

Global Coalition for Conflict Transformation- call for applications

Balkan based NGO Transconflict (www.transconflict.org) is launching a Global Coalition for Conflict Transformation (GCCT). This initiative will bring together not for profit organisations who are committed to upholding and implementing certain Principles of Conflict Transformation (which can be found here http://www.transconflict.com/advocate/global-coalition-for-conflict-transformation/principles-of-conflict-transformation/)

The GCCT's mission is to raise awareness and understanding about conflict transformation, facilitate theoretical and policy oriented debate on conflict transformation, advocate for greater support for conflict transformation processes and catalyse the sharing of best practice between practitioners.

Ru'ya urges any NGO based in the East and/or Horn of Africa to consider applying to the Coalition; it is essential for NGOs in the region to share experiences with other conflict ridden regions, learn from the example of others and also promote awareness of the difficulties in the region. The GCCT provides an excellent forum for all these things.

Visit Transconflicts website for more information  http://www.transconflict.com/

No end in sight to conflict in South Kordofan; UK Parliament calls for "effective action"

A SPLM-N spokesman claimed nineteen people were killed last weekend when heavy clashes broke out between government forces and insurgent rebels in South Kordofan. There are reports of heavy artillery bombing by the Sudan government being carried out in Taruje, near the border with South Sudan.

A SPLM-N rebel shows off a rocket propelled grenade launcher captured in clashes with government forces

Fighting initially broke out in June but has intensified in recent weeks, with the end of the rainy season. Earlier this month, the UK Parliament addressed a letter to the UK's Foreign Secretary William Hague, which urged the UK government to impose targeted sanctions on high level members of Sudan's ruling party, who currently enjoy unimpeded travel to the UK, where many of them even own residences. The letter furthered that unless the Government took effective action instead of making dialogue its priority, Khartoum would continue to act ruthlessly with impunity.

Meanwhile, debate continues to rage over the merits of the ICC prosecutors office seeking yet another arres warrant for a high level Sudanese official, given that no one from Sudanese government has yet stood trial in the International Criminal Court. Some experts, such as Phil Clark a long time observer at the court and a lecturer at the London School of Oriental and African Studies, have claimed the issuing of arrest warrants allows people in the West to feel as if they are acting positively to halt a genocide, despite the fact that the ICC has had little or no impact on the way the conflict in Darfur has actually played out. Not everyone agrees with this point of view of course; many claim the alleged crimes are so horrific, those who committed cannot simply get away without an international arrest warrant being issued as if it were a free pass. Although there is merit in this point, it is true that the issuing of arrest warrants for Sudanese officials has had little impact on their behaviour.

ICC issues arrest warrant for Sudan Defence Minister over Darfur

ICC chief prosecutor Luis Moreno- Ocampo

The International Criminal Court's chief prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo has requested an arrest warrant for Sudan's defence minister, Abdelrahim Mohamed Hussein, for alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity in Darfur. The crimes are alleged to have occurred between 2003 and 2004; the Hague based ICC has previously inidcted Sudan's President Omar al-Bashir for the same crimes, but also for the crime of genocide.

The warrant was issued on Friday, in a statement released by Moreno-Ocampo's office which claimed that Mr. Hussein, who was Sudan's Interior Minister and government representative in Sudan at the time of the alleged crimes, is among those who bear "the greatest criminal responsibility" for the atrocities committed in Darfur.

When questioned on the timing of the request, Mr. Moreno-Ocampo stated he wished to refocus attention on Sudan's policy and actions. ICC judges will now examine the request and decide if an arrest warrant shall be issued. It would be the fourth such arrest warrant issued for a Sudanese official in relation to Darfur.

Abdelrahim Mohamed Hussein

A spokesman for the Sudan government branded the allegations as nonsense; It is unlikely that even if an arrest warrant were to be issued by the ICC, it would affect the actions of Khartoum. Despite an arrest warrant being issued two years ago for Presideny Bashir, he has continued his policies unabated and has traveled to several other countries, mostly in Africa, without being arrested. The African Union has consistently expressed concern over its belief that the ICC is unfairly targeting African leaders.

Academics have already begun to debate why the crime of genocide is not also being leveled at Mr. Hussein, as it was at President Bashir. Genocide scholar Professor William Schabas looks more closely at this issue on his blog http://humanrightsdoctorate.blogspot.com/

Tensions between Sudan and South Sudan continue to escalate

South Sudan last week petitioned the United Nations Security Council, demanding the immediate withdrawal of Sudan Armed Forces from parts of the southern state. The complaint also called for the release of South Sudanese soldiers, allegedly taken prisoner by Sudan. South Sudan's Foreign Affairs Minister Nhial Deng Nhial also called on Khartoum to immediately halt all forms of aggression, fearing a return to all out war.

Also this weekend, the Sudanese government blocked the U.N.'s relief coordinator Valerie Amos from visiting Khartoum, claiming the top official with responsibility for humanitarian issues was not available to meet with her. This claim proves rather disingenuous seeing as how the visit was planned months in advance. Amos planned to use the trip to press high level Khartoum officials to allow greater humanitarian access to the conflict ridden states of South Kordofan and Blue Nile.

Sudan army claims it has captured rebel army base; UN says refugee numbers to rise to 100,000

A Sudan military spokesman claimed Sudan's armed forces had captured a strategic rebel base in South Kordofan. A spokesman for the SPLA-N however, denied the claim.

Army spokesman Sawarmi Khaled Saad claimed Sudanese forces captured the base in the Lake Jau area on Saturday afternoon; his SPLA-N counterpart Qamar Dalam claimed this to be false. It is impossible to independently verify either claim as the Khartoum based government has banned journalists from South Kordofan.

Earlier in the week, the SPLA-N leader Yasser Arman accused Khartoum of engaging in a heavy military campaign against civilians in South Kordofan. The UN refugee agency said last week that approximately 80,000 people have fled conflict in the region so far this year and they expect this figure to rise to 100,000 by the end of the year.

Nobel Women's Initiative highlight Ru'yas work

As part of the Global 16 Days of activism against gender violence, the Nobel Women's Initiative has highlighted the incredible contribution our founder and executive director, Zeinab Blandia, has made towards the advancement of women in South Kordofan.

The Nobel Women's Initiative was founded in 2006 by six female Nobel laureates, to help strengthen and support the work being done to advance women's rights worldwide. The Initiative uses the prestige and profile of the Nobel prize positively to highlight and support women who work for peace, justice and equality.



Find the article on Zeinab by the Nobel Women's Initiative here http://nobelwomensinitiative.org/2011/12/day-8-spotlighting-zeinab-blandia-sudan/?ref=18