Latest news with #DecemberRevolution
Al Taghyeer
20-05-2025
- Politics
- Al Taghyeer
Appointment of Kamal Idris as Prime Minister of Sudan stirs contradictory reactions
Observers describe the appointment as void of required political legitimacy and apparently failing to secure broad consensus. Port Sudan: Altaghyeer The appointment of Dr. Kamal Idris as Prime Minister of Sudan on Monday has stirred intense debate among those who support him and a strong reaction among those who opposing his appointment, as he has been linked to controversial regimes, including Omar al-Bashir's, the December Revolution but equally with the current war period. Who is Kamal Idris? Idris graduated from the University of Khartoum's Faculty of Law. He holds a Ph.D. in International Law from the Graduate Institute of International Studies in Geneva, Switzerland. He served as Director-General of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) in 1997-2003. Throughout his career, he has held various distinguished positions, including member of the UN International Law Commission and spokesperson for the Group of Developing Countries. He is fluent in Arabic, English, and French, with knowledge of Spanish. Idris has received numerous awards and honors, including honorary doctorates from several universities worldwide. Contradiction and Criticism The newly appointed Prime Minister was described as a self-contradictory who seeks only his own interests. Critics pointed out that he was an uncommitted member of the Sudanese Communist Party and engaged in activities of its university students' offshoot 'the Democratic Front' and a member of the late Sudan military ruler Jaffar Nimeri's party 'the Sudanese Socialist Union' before aligning with the Islamic Front. He was a candidate in the 2010 Presidential Elections against al-Bashir with the support of Islamists, who wanted to make the elections plausible as a true democratic process. He appeared in a video clip during the latest revolution describing al-Bashir's regime as criminal and demanding it's resignation and recently appeared in a recording speech denouncing any debasing of the national army, saying such persons should be denied to assume any public posts. Challenges Ahead of the New Prime Minister The new Prime Minister Faces significant challenges, including managing the political and economic crisis, rebuilding state institutions, and achieving stability amidst the ongoing war between the Sudanese army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces. He also faces challenges of being accepted by the Sudanese masses, with many expressing their rejection of his appointment, citing corruption cases linked to his career. In 2006, he reportedly faked his birth date certificate, pushing his birth date from 1945 to 1954, to fit for staying at his job, leaping away from looming retirement age at the time. Reactions Some observers believe that Kamal Idris's chances of success might be greater than expected given his neutral stance and this step could potentially pave the way for a ceasefire. But others cited reservations. Nour al-Din Salah al-Din, a partisan leader, stated that the appointment lacks the required political legitimacy, emphasizing such a move needs broad consensus resulting from a Sudanese inclusive political process. Academic Adel Taha Suleiman believes that the question was not rejecting Kamal Idris' appointment but rather putting an end to the current raging war. Idris' appointment was backed by the Islamic movement leadership who wanted the war to continue therefore Idris will come and leave without solving the roots causes of the problem, he argued.
Al Taghyeer
26-04-2025
- Business
- Al Taghyeer
The Sudanese Economy: Between the Devastation of War and the Myth of Production
The Sudanese Economy: Between the Devastation of War and the Myth of Production Omer Sidahmed April 2025 Email: [email protected] 'Sudan's agricultural production during the war has surpassed production levels in years of peace' – A statement attributed to the Minister of Finance in the de facto government, Jibril Ibrahim, and publishedby 'Al Arabiya Sudan' on April 24, 2025, has sparked widespread controversy. As the war enters its third year, Sudan is living through one of the worst chapters in its history: economic devastation and the collapse of essential services. The reality on the ground refutes these claims. Jibril Ibrahim is not merely an acting finance minister; he is a militia leader, a prominent Islamist figure, and a longtime ally of the National Congress Party, which ruled Sudan for three decades with authoritarianism and corruption before being overthrown by the December Revolution. Today, he is reviving the same old project: a kidnapped state, plundered resources, and political propaganda disconnected from reality. **Agriculture in Sudan has never been merely an economic sector; it is the main source of livelihood for 70% of the population. Today, however, it is besieged by war:** – Most agricultural production areas are located within active military operation zones. – Fuel, fertilizer, seeds, and financing are absent. – Farmers have been displaced, or their projects have halted due to lack of security. – There is no official data or field reporting to support government statements. Who, then, is planting and harvesting in a country where villages are bombed and supply lines are cut? According to the general manager of one of the major banks, the percentage of bad debts in Sudan has reached 50%. The banking system, already fragile, has grown even weaker due to the war and the swelling of the parallel economy, with 95% of the cash supply existing outside the banks. There is no banking capacity to finance agricultural or industrial production, which exposes the claims of economic growth as baseless. Sudan's current economy is managed by a network of alliances among remnants of the National Congress Party and military militias. There is no budget, no accountability, and no transparency: – Gold is smuggled through parallel airports. – Revenues are spent outside the official budget framework. – Resources are allocated to fund the war. – Institutions are used to suppress revolutionaries and the revolution. – More than 13 million children are in urgent need of support (UNICEF). – 70% of health facilities are destroyed or out of service (World Health Organization, 2024). – Electricity and water are unavailable in vast parts of the country. – More than 20 million people are suffering from hunger and food insecurity (World Food Programme, 2024). – GDP has contracted by 18% (World Bank, 2023). – 60% of industrial activity has ceased. – Poverty levels have exceeded 65%. – Agricultural exports have declined significantly. This statement is not a slip of the tongue, but rather an attempt to falsify reality and justify the war. Sudan needs to dismantle the war economy and build a peace-driven economy under a transparent civilian state that serves its citizens, not misleads them. References – Statement by Jibril Ibrahim, 'Al Arabiya Sudan', April 24, 2025. – World Bank: Sudan Economic Monitor, 2023. – World Health Organization: Sudan Report, 2024. – UNICEF: Sudan Education Emergency Report, 2024. – World Food Programme: WFP Sudan Emergency Update, 2024.
Al Taghyeer
28-01-2025
- Politics
- Al Taghyeer
Sudanese civilian forces receive threats of torture following army advance in Bahri
Persons dressed in Military fatigue, threaten civilian groups in Bahri's Shandi Station, bringing alive memories of infamous practices during the defunct regime era. Khartoum: Altaghyeer Two soldiers in Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) attire appeared in a video footage threatening civil forces to be detained in a notorious detention place in Kober neighborhood, Bahri city. 'This is the security organ's detention center which you, the Forces of Freedom and Change (FFC), know very well', one of the armed men said referring to where the civil activists were arrested and tortured during the regime of dictator Omer al-Bashir. 'This is the place of refrigerators hey you FFC', he added threatening them they will be taken where very cold temperature is used to torment the regime political opponents. Al-Bashir regime (1989-2019) was known for brutal crackdown on civil activists and political opponents exploiting the security services in terrorizing them through untold physical and psychological torture. The FFC has been among the vanguards of the December 2018-April 2019 Revolution which succeeded in toppling al-Bashir's regime. In another incident a video circulated on the social media showed armed men, in probably General Security Service's uniforms, ridiculing murals of the Revolution's martyrs and slogans on the walls opposite the SAF General Command building where military men severely attacked the protesters' sit-in in June 2019. The incidents were widely condemned by public figures, revolutionists and activists who responded by organizing a social media campaign affirming that the December Revolution will survive. Last Friday, SAF succeeded in breaking the Rapid Support Forces' siege on its General Command in centeral Khartoum and the Signal Corps in Bahri city.
