Latest news with #Al-Bashir
Memri
6 days ago
- Politics
- Memri
Beware Sudan's Islamist Army Generals
It was the English writer Oscar Wilde who said that second marriages were like the "triumph of hope over experience." That we hope things work out better "the second time" could apply to the terrible civil war raging in Sudan and the role of the Sudanese Army (SAF), led by General (and interim Head of State) Abdel Fatah Al-Burhan. In 1989, the Sudanese Army overthrew a civilian government and imposed harsh Islamic rule. What was supposedly a regime run by a clever Islamist civilian, Dr. Hassan Al-Turabi, eventually became a regime run by SAF generals, led by General Omar Al-Bashir, committed to Islamist ideology. The Al-Bashir regime which ruled the country for almost 30 years until 2019 oversaw not one but two genocides – one in South Sudan and the other in Darfur – and promoted terrorism both regionally and internationally. Of course, Sudan harbored Osama bin Laden and what became Al-Qaeda in the early days. In those years in Sudan – 1992-1997 – Bin Laden had already forged an agreement with the terrorists of Egyptian Islamic Jihad (EIJ) which became a key part of Al-Qaeda and provided bin Laden with his second in command, Dr. Ayman Al-Zawahiri. Even today, Al-Qaeda's leadership sheltering in Iran is led by an Egyptian, Saif Al-Adel. It is while in Sudan and protected by SAF General and President Al-Bashir, or shortly thereafter, that Al-Qaeda tried to assassinate Egyptian President Mubarak in Addis Ababa in 1995 and bombed the American Embassies in Kenya and Tanzania in 1998. The SAF-ruled regime in Sudan continued support for terrorism long after bin Laden departed and Hassan Al-Turabi was purged. The Khartoum regime later played a key role in supporting the so-called Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) terrorist group in Uganda.[1] Sudan served as a key smuggling partner for Iran in supplying missiles to Hamas in Gaza, a fact that would lead to Israeli airstrikes in Sudan in 2009, 2011, and 2012.[2] The Al-Bashir regime was overthrown in 2019, in the face of massive public demonstrations, by his own generals. Al-Burhan quickly moved to consolidate power and in 2021 overthrew a fragile interim civilian government under technocrat Dr. Abdullah Hamdok. In 2023, SAF and their longtime military allies-turned-rivals in the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) began fighting among themselves, plunging the country into a brutal civil war that still continues.[3] Like Al-Bashir in the early days of his rule, Al-Burhan is supposed to shine in comparison with others, supposedly being "the moderate" compared to the many extremists in his camp. In addition to Islamist senior army officers, a key part of the SAF formations fighting the RSF are now units made up of and led by Islamists.[4] Among them are the former Darfur rebels of the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM) led by Dr. Jibril Ibrahim, currently Sudan's minister of finance. JEM used to be adversaries of the Sudanese Army – now they are allies. Ibrahim played a key role in the egging on of the overthrow of the interim civilian government (of which he was a part) in 2021. Not surprisingly, he kept the finance minister job after the military coup. Also fighting alongside SAF are Islamist formations, such as the Al-Bara Bin Malik Brigade, the military wing of the Islamist Movement in Sudan and the Bunyan Al-Marsous Brigade.[5] According to the Lebanese research site Daraj, there are also thousands of other Islamists, including former members of the Al-Bashir regime's state security – NISS – that have flooded into the ranks of other SAF units.[6] At the beginning of the war, SAF was outnumbered by the RSF and the army has been able to at least partially remedy the situation by taking in as many of these extremist factions as they can, either individually or collectively.[7] Of course, most of the senior leadership of SAF as it existed in 2019 or 2021 or today is essentially the same force that Al-Bashir created through the years, purging secular or disloyal officers. Multiple reports say that Al-Burhan is empowering the Islamists rather than try to limit their sway.[8] Given that the war continues to rage and that propaganda is a key part of the battle, one would think that SAF would be on its best behavior, wanting to reassure the Sudanese people and the international community that it is very different from the army that ruled and brutalized Sudan from 1989 to 2019. But that is not the case. Not only has SAF been creditably accused (as has RSF) of numerous war crimes, it has also protected former senior officials of the Al-Bashir regime, including the former dictator himself. SAF has also behaved brutally against many Sudanese civilians after "liberating" them from RSF. And, as the Al-Bashir regime did more than a decade ago, SAF has forged ties with Iran, their old partner, in supplying them arms (including Iranian drones) for the SAF war machine.[9] Al-Burhan himself – the statesman, the "moderate" – has shown himself to be an intolerant and aggressive figure but surprisingly pliable and amenable to extremist penetration of the military and the bureaucracy.[10] While there are rumors of Islamist dissatisfaction with Al-Burhan, others say that he is either too weak to stop Islamist influence within SAF or that he agrees with the Islamist trend.[11] The concern is not that he is forced to deal with Islamists because of circumstances, but that he is in lockstep with them and intends to rule with them. An early July Cairo 2025 meeting between Al-Burhan and Libyan strongman Khalifa Haftar, arranged by Egypt, seems to have gone disastrously wrong, with a fiery Al-Burhan making an already tense situation worse. Reportedly Egypt's President Al-Sisi, who sought to mediate and improve relations between Libya and Sudan, was not pleased.[12] If Al-Burhan is like this now, when he has not won the war yet, how will he be if he triumphs? *Yigal Carmon is President of MEMRI.
Mint
07-07-2025
- Business
- Mint
With sanctions lifted, Syria looks to solar power as more than a patchwork fix to its energy crisis
DAMASCUS, Syria (AP) — Abdulrazak al-Jenan swept the dust off his solar panel on his apartment roof overlooking Damascus. Syria's largest city was mostly pitch-black, the few speckles of light coming from the other households able to afford solar panels, batteries, or private generators. Al-Jenan went thousands of dollars in debt to buy his solar panel in 2019. It was an expensive coping mechanism at the time, but without it, he couldn't charge his phone and run the refrigerator. Syria has not had more than four hours of state electricity per day for years, as a result of the nearly 14-year civil war that ended with the ouster of former President Bashar Assad in December. Syria's new leaders are hoping renewable energy will now become more than a patchwork solution. Investment is beginning to return to the country with the lifting of U.S. sanctions, and major energy projects are planned, including an industrial-scale solar farm that would secure about a tenth of the country's energy needs. 'The solution to the problem isn't putting solar panels on roofs,' Syria's interim Energy Minister Mohammad al-Bashir told The Associated Press. 'It's securing enough power for the families through our networks in Syria. This is what we're trying to do.' Some of the efforts focus on simply repairing infrastructure destroyed in the war. The World Bank recently announced a $146 million grant to help Syria repair damaged transmission lines and transformer substations. Al-Bashir said Syria's infrastructure that has been repaired can provide 5,000 megawatts, about half the country's needs, but fuel and gas shortages have hampered generation. With the sanctions lifted, that supply could come in soon. More significantly, Syria recently signed a $7 billion energy deal with a consortium of Qatari, Turkish, and American companies. The program over the next three and a half years would develop four combined-cycle gas turbines with a total generating capacity estimated at approximately 4,000 megawatts and a 1,000-megawatt solar farm. This would 'broadly secure the needs' of Syrians, said Al-Bashir. While Syria is initially focusing on fixing its existing fossil fuel infrastructure to improve quality of life, help make businesses functional again, and entice investors, the U.N. Development Program said in May that a renewable energy plan will be developed in the next year for the country. The plan will look at Syria's projected energy demand and determine how much of it can come from renewable sources. 'Given the critical role of energy in Syria's recovery, we have to rapidly address energy poverty and progressively accelerate the access to renewable energy,' Sudipto Mukerjee, UNDP's resident representative in Syria, said in a statement announcing the plan. While the war caused significant damage to Syria's infrastructure, crippling Washington-led sanctions imposed during the Assad dynasty's decades of draconian rule made it impossible for Syria to secure fuel and spare parts to generate power. 'Many companies over the past period would tell us the sanctions impact matters like imports, implementing projects, transferring funds and so on,' al-Bashir said. During a visit to Turkey in May, the minister said Syria could only secure about 1700 megawatts, a little less than 20%, of its energy needs. A series of executive orders by U.S. President Donald Trump lifted many sanctions on Syria, aiming to end the country's isolation from the global banking system so that it can become viable again and rebuild itself. The United Nations estimates the civil war caused hundreds of billions of dollars in damages and economic losses across the country. Some 90% of Syrians live in poverty. Buying solar panels, private generators or other means of producing their own energy has been out of reach for most of the population. 'Any kind of economic recovery needs a functional energy sector,' said Joseph Daher, Syrian-Swiss economist and researcher, who said that stop-gap measures like solar panels and private generators were luxuries only available to a few who could afford it. 'There is also a need to diminish the cost of electricity in Syria, which is one of the most expensive in the region.' Prices for electricity in recent years surged as the country under its former rulers struggled with currency inflation and rolling back on subsidies. The new officials who inherited the situation say that lifting sanctions will help them rectify the country's financial and economic woes, and provide sufficient and affordable electricity as soon as they can. 'The executive order lifts most of the obstacles for political and economic investment with Syria," said Qutaiba Idlibi, who leads the Americas section of the Foreign Ministry. Syria has been under Washington-led sanctions for decades, but designations intensified during the war that started in 2011. Even with some waivers for humanitarian programs, it was difficult to bring in resources and materials to fix Syria's critical infrastructure — especially electricity — further compounding the woes of the vast majority of Syrians, who live in poverty. The removal of sanctions signals to U.S. businesses that Trump is serious in his support for Syria's recovery, Idlibi said. 'Right now, we have a partnership with the United States as any normal country would do," he said. Meanwhile, Al-Jenan is able to turn on both his fans on a hot summer day while he watches the afternoon news on TV, as the temperature rises to 35 degrees Celsius (95 F). He doesn't want to let go of his solar panel but hopes the lifting of sanctions will eventually bring sustainable state electricity across the country. 'We can at least know what's going on in the country and watch on TV,' he said. 'We really were cut off from the entire world.' Chehayeb reported from Beirut.
07-07-2025
- Business
Syria looks to solar power as more than a patchwork fix to its energy crisis
DAMASCUS, Syria -- Abdulrazak al-Jenan swept the dust off his solar panel on his apartment roof overlooking Damascus. Syria's largest city was mostly pitch-black, the few speckles of light coming from the other households able to afford solar panels, batteries, or private generators. Al-Jenan went thousands of dollars in debt to buy his solar panel in 2019. It was an expensive coping mechanism at the time, but without it, he couldn't charge his phone and run the refrigerator. Syria has not had more than four hours of state electricity per day for years, as a result of the nearly 14-year civil war that ended with the ouster of former President Bashar Assad in December. Syria's new leaders are hoping renewable energy will now become more than a patchwork solution. Investment is beginning to return to the country with the lifting of U.S. sanctions, and major energy projects are planned, including an industrial-scale solar farm that would secure about a tenth of the country's energy needs. 'The solution to the problem isn't putting solar panels on roofs,' Syria's interim Energy Minister Mohammad al-Bashir told The Associated Press. 'It's securing enough power for the families through our networks in Syria. This is what we're trying to do.' Some of the efforts focus on simply repairing infrastructure destroyed in the war. The World Bank recently announced a $146 million grant to help Syria repair damaged transmission lines and transformer substations. Al-Bashir said Syria's infrastructure that has been repaired can provide 5,000 megawatts, about half the country's needs, but fuel and gas shortages have hampered generation. With the sanctions lifted, that supply could come in soon. More significantly, Syria recently signed a $7 billion energy deal with a consortium of Qatari, Turkish, and American companies. The program over the next three and a half years would develop four combined-cycle gas turbines with a total generating capacity estimated at approximately 4,000 megawatts and a 1,000-megawatt solar farm. This would 'broadly secure the needs' of Syrians, said Al-Bashir. While Syria is initially focusing on fixing its existing fossil fuel infrastructure to improve quality of life, help make businesses functional again, and entice investors, the U.N. Development Program said in May that a renewable energy plan will be developed in the next year for the country. The plan will look at Syria's projected energy demand and determine how much of it can come from renewable sources. 'Given the critical role of energy in Syria's recovery, we have to rapidly address energy poverty and progressively accelerate the access to renewable energy,' Sudipto Mukerjee, UNDP's resident representative in Syria, said in a statement announcing the plan. While the war caused significant damage to Syria's infrastructure, crippling Washington-led sanctions imposed during the Assad dynasty's decades of draconian rule made it impossible for Syria to secure fuel and spare parts to generate power. 'Many companies over the past period would tell us the sanctions impact matters like imports, implementing projects, transferring funds and so on,' al-Bashir said. During a visit to Turkey in May, the minister said Syria could only secure about 1700 megawatts, a little less than 20%, of its energy needs. A series of executive orders by U.S. President Donald Trump lifted many sanctions on Syria, aiming to end the country's isolation from the global banking system so that it can become viable again and rebuild itself. The United Nations estimates the civil war caused hundreds of billions of dollars in damages and economic losses across the country. Some 90% of Syrians live in poverty. Buying solar panels, private generators or other means of producing their own energy has been out of reach for most of the population. 'Any kind of economic recovery needs a functional energy sector,' said Joseph Daher, Syrian-Swiss economist and researcher, who said that stop-gap measures like solar panels and private generators were luxuries only available to a few who could afford it. 'There is also a need to diminish the cost of electricity in Syria, which is one of the most expensive in the region.' Prices for electricity in recent years surged as the country under its former rulers struggled with currency inflation and rolling back on subsidies. The new officials who inherited the situation say that lifting sanctions will help them rectify the country's financial and economic woes, and provide sufficient and affordable electricity as soon as they can. 'The executive order lifts most of the obstacles for political and economic investment with Syria," said Qutaiba Idlibi, who leads the Americas section of the Foreign Ministry. Syria has been under Washington-led sanctions for decades, but designations intensified during the war that started in 2011. Even with some waivers for humanitarian programs, it was difficult to bring in resources and materials to fix Syria's critical infrastructure — especially electricity — further compounding the woes of the vast majority of Syrians, who live in poverty. The removal of sanctions signals to U.S. businesses that Trump is serious in his support for Syria's recovery, Idlibi said. 'Right now, we have a partnership with the United States as any normal country would do," he said. Meanwhile, Al-Jenan is able to turn on both his fans on a hot summer day while he watches the afternoon news on TV, as the temperature rises to 35 degrees Celsius (95 F). He doesn't want to let go of his solar panel but hopes the lifting of sanctions will eventually bring sustainable state electricity across the country. 'We can at least know what's going on in the country and watch on TV,' he said. 'We really were cut off from the entire world.'
The Hill
07-07-2025
- Business
- The Hill
With sanctions lifted, Syria looks to solar power as more than a patchwork fix to its energy crisis
DAMASCUS, Syria (AP) — Abdulrazak al-Jenan swept the dust off his solar panel on his apartment roof overlooking Damascus. Syria's largest city was mostly pitch-black, the few speckles of light coming from the other households able to afford solar panels, batteries, or private generators. Al-Jenan went thousands of dollars in debt to buy his solar panel in 2019. It was an expensive coping mechanism at the time, but without it, he couldn't charge his phone and run the refrigerator. Syria has not had more than four hours of state electricity per day for years, as a result of the nearly 14-year civil war that ended with the ouster of former President Bashar Assad in December. Syria's new leaders are hoping renewable energy will now become more than a patchwork solution. Investment is beginning to return to the country with the lifting of U.S. sanctions, and major energy projects are planned, including an industrial-scale solar farm that would secure about a tenth of the country's energy needs. 'The solution to the problem isn't putting solar panels on roofs,' Syria's interim Energy Minister Mohammad al-Bashir told The Associated Press. 'It's securing enough power for the families through our networks in Syria. This is what we're trying to do.' Some of the efforts focus on simply repairing infrastructure destroyed in the war. The World Bank recently announced a $146 million grant to help Syria repair damaged transmission lines and transformer substations. Al-Bashir said Syria's infrastructure that has been repaired can provide 5,000 megawatts, about half the country's needs, but fuel and gas shortages have hampered generation. With the sanctions lifted, that supply could come in soon. More significantly, Syria recently signed a $7 billion energy deal with a consortium of Qatari, Turkish, and American companies. The program over the next three and a half years would develop four combined-cycle gas turbines with a total generating capacity estimated at approximately 4,000 megawatts and a 1,000-megawatt solar farm. This would 'broadly secure the needs' of Syrians, said Al-Bashir. While Syria is initially focusing on fixing its existing fossil fuel infrastructure to improve quality of life, help make businesses functional again, and entice investors, the U.N. Development Program said in May that a renewable energy plan will be developed in the next year for the country. The plan will look at Syria's projected energy demand and determine how much of it can come from renewable sources. 'Given the critical role of energy in Syria's recovery, we have to rapidly address energy poverty and progressively accelerate the access to renewable energy,' Sudipto Mukerjee, UNDP's resident representative in Syria, said in a statement announcing the plan. While the war caused significant damage to Syria's infrastructure, crippling Washington-led sanctions imposed during the Assad dynasty's decades of draconian rule made it impossible for Syria to secure fuel and spare parts to generate power. 'Many companies over the past period would tell us the sanctions impact matters like imports, implementing projects, transferring funds and so on,' al-Bashir said. During a visit to Turkey in May, the minister said Syria could only secure about 1700 megawatts, a little less than 20%, of its energy needs. A series of executive orders by U.S. President Donald Trump lifted many sanctions on Syria, aiming to end the country's isolation from the global banking system so that it can become viable again and rebuild itself. The United Nations estimates the civil war caused hundreds of billions of dollars in damages and economic losses across the country. Some 90% of Syrians live in poverty. Buying solar panels, private generators or other means of producing their own energy has been out of reach for most of the population. 'Any kind of economic recovery needs a functional energy sector,' said Joseph Daher, Syrian-Swiss economist and researcher, who said that stop-gap measures like solar panels and private generators were luxuries only available to a few who could afford it. 'There is also a need to diminish the cost of electricity in Syria, which is one of the most expensive in the region.' Prices for electricity in recent years surged as the country under its former rulers struggled with currency inflation and rolling back on subsidies. The new officials who inherited the situation say that lifting sanctions will help them rectify the country's financial and economic woes, and provide sufficient and affordable electricity as soon as they can. 'The executive order lifts most of the obstacles for political and economic investment with Syria,' said Qutaiba Idlibi, who leads the Americas section of the Foreign Ministry. Syria has been under Washington-led sanctions for decades, but designations intensified during the war that started in 2011. Even with some waivers for humanitarian programs, it was difficult to bring in resources and materials to fix Syria's critical infrastructure — especially electricity — further compounding the woes of the vast majority of Syrians, who live in poverty. The removal of sanctions signals to U.S. businesses that Trump is serious in his support for Syria's recovery, Idlibi said. 'Right now, we have a partnership with the United States as any normal country would do,' he said. Meanwhile, Al-Jenan is able to turn on both his fans on a hot summer day while he watches the afternoon news on TV, as the temperature rises to 35 degrees Celsius (95 F). He doesn't want to let go of his solar panel but hopes the lifting of sanctions will eventually bring sustainable state electricity across the country. 'We can at least know what's going on in the country and watch on TV,' he said. 'We really were cut off from the entire world.' ___ Chehayeb reported from Beirut.
San Francisco Chronicle
07-07-2025
- Business
- San Francisco Chronicle
With sanctions lifted, Syria looks to solar power as more than a patchwork fix to its energy crisis
DAMASCUS, Syria (AP) — Abdulrazak al-Jenan swept the dust off his solar panel on his apartment roof overlooking Damascus. Syria's largest city was mostly pitch-black, the few speckles of light coming from the other households able to afford solar panels, batteries, or private generators. Al-Jenan went thousands of dollars in debt to buy his solar panel in 2019. It was an expensive coping mechanism at the time, but without it, he couldn't charge his phone and run the refrigerator. Syria has not had more than four hours of state electricity per day for years, as a result of the nearly 14-year civil war that ended with the ouster of former President Bashar Assad in December. Syria's new leaders are hoping renewable energy will now become more than a patchwork solution. Investment is beginning to return to the country with the lifting of U.S. sanctions, and major energy projects are planned, including an industrial-scale solar farm that would secure about a tenth of the country's energy needs. 'The solution to the problem isn't putting solar panels on roofs,' Syria's interim Energy Minister Mohammad al-Bashir told The Associated Press. 'It's securing enough power for the families through our networks in Syria. This is what we're trying to do.' Restoring the existing energy infrastructure Some of the efforts focus on simply repairing infrastructure destroyed in the war. The World Bank recently announced a $146 million grant to help Syria repair damaged transmission lines and transformer substations. Al-Bashir said Syria's infrastructure that has been repaired can provide 5,000 megawatts, about half the country's needs, but fuel and gas shortages have hampered generation. With the sanctions lifted, that supply could come in soon. More significantly, Syria recently signed a $7 billion energy deal with a consortium of Qatari, Turkish, and American companies. The program over the next three and a half years would develop four combined-cycle gas turbines with a total generating capacity estimated at approximately 4,000 megawatts and a 1,000-megawatt solar farm. This would 'broadly secure the needs' of Syrians, said Al-Bashir. While Syria is initially focusing on fixing its existing fossil fuel infrastructure to improve quality of life, help make businesses functional again, and entice investors, the U.N. Development Program said in May that a renewable energy plan will be developed in the next year for the country. The plan will look at Syria's projected energy demand and determine how much of it can come from renewable sources. 'Given the critical role of energy in Syria's recovery, we have to rapidly address energy poverty and progressively accelerate the access to renewable energy,' Sudipto Mukerjee, UNDP's resident representative in Syria, said in a statement announcing the plan. Sanctions crippled the power grid While the war caused significant damage to Syria's infrastructure, crippling Washington-led sanctions imposed during the Assad dynasty's decades of draconian rule made it impossible for Syria to secure fuel and spare parts to generate power. 'Many companies over the past period would tell us the sanctions impact matters like imports, implementing projects, transferring funds and so on,' al-Bashir said. During a visit to Turkey in May, the minister said Syria could only secure about 1700 megawatts, a little less than 20%, of its energy needs. A series of executive orders by U.S. President Donald Trump lifted many sanctions on Syria, aiming to end the country's isolation from the global banking system so that it can become viable again and rebuild itself. The United Nations estimates the civil war caused hundreds of billions of dollars in damages and economic losses across the country. Some 90% of Syrians live in poverty. Buying solar panels, private generators or other means of producing their own energy has been out of reach for most of the population. 'Any kind of economic recovery needs a functional energy sector,' said Joseph Daher, Syrian-Swiss economist and researcher, who said that stop-gap measures like solar panels and private generators were luxuries only available to a few who could afford it. 'There is also a need to diminish the cost of electricity in Syria, which is one of the most expensive in the region.' Prices for electricity in recent years surged as the country under its former rulers struggled with currency inflation and rolling back on subsidies. The new officials who inherited the situation say that lifting sanctions will help them rectify the country's financial and economic woes, and provide sufficient and affordable electricity as soon as they can. 'The executive order lifts most of the obstacles for political and economic investment with Syria," said Qutaiba Idlibi, who leads the Americas section of the Foreign Ministry. Syria has been under Washington-led sanctions for decades, but designations intensified during the war that started in 2011. Even with some waivers for humanitarian programs, it was difficult to bring in resources and materials to fix Syria's critical infrastructure — especially electricity — further compounding the woes of the vast majority of Syrians, who live in poverty. The focus is economic recovery The removal of sanctions signals to U.S. businesses that Trump is serious in his support for Syria's recovery, Idlibi said. 'Right now, we have a partnership with the United States as any normal country would do," he said. 'We can at least know what's going on in the country and watch on TV,' he said. 'We really were cut off from the entire world.' ___ Chehayeb reported from Beirut.
