Cincunri Sakia

Senin, 15 April 2019

Sudan crisis: Protest leaders demand end of 'deep state' - BBC News

Organisers of mass protests in Sudan have told the BBC they want the full dismantling of the "deep state" left behind by ousted leader Omar al-Bashir.

A spokesman said leaders of the past regime should be put on trial.

Mr Bashir was toppled by the army last week after 30 years in power and a military council has pledged elections in two-years time.

But protesters remain camped outside army HQ in the capital, Khartoum, demanding a civilian administration.

Reports on Monday said there had been efforts to break up the sit-in. Details are sketchy but witnesses said troops had stepped back from immediate confrontation.

On Sunday the transitional military council sought to appease protest leaders, telling them that key figures from the former government had been arrested. It is not clear who those officials are.

A military spokesman also promised not to disperse protesters and said the council was "ready to implement" whatever civilian government the opposition parties agreed.

In another development, 13 people were reportedly killed in an armed attack on protesters in the troubled region of South Darfur over the weekend.

The privately-owned Darfur 24 news website said "gunmen" had attacked the anti-government protest at a camp for displaced people about 17km (10 miles) east of the regional capital, Nyala.

Mr Bashir has been indicted on charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity in Darfur by the International Criminal Court. He denies any wrongdoing.

What are protest leaders demanding?

Amjad Farid, of the Sudanese Professionals' Association (SPA) which has spearheaded protests, told the BBC that they "completely rejected" the military council currently leading Sudan.

He said demands included the "full dissolution of the deep state" and the dismantling of state intelligence agencies.

Opposition politician Mubarak al Fadil told the BBC that the role of the military should decrease over time.

"There could be two transitional periods," he said. "A first transitional period that would continue for six months where the military transitional council will continue to be the sovereign [power] and accomplish a number of important missions and tasks that is needed to clear the ground, and then the rest of the transitional period - which is a year and a half - could be presided over by a presidential council that would have a military representation within it."

Meanwhile, protesters in Khartoum remained in defiant mood.

"We are here to remove the entire system, a system that does not give service equally to the people," Mohammed Jakur told AFP news agency. "A system that leave[s] people under poverty. A system that does not allow Sudan, as a rich country with human and natural resources, to act as any other country in the world."

What has the military said?

In a news conference on Sunday, spokesman Maj Gen Shams Ad-din Shanto said the military council was "ready to implement" whatever civilian government the opposition parties agreed.

"We won't appoint a PM. They'll choose one," he said.

He also said the army would not remove protesters from their sit-in by force, but called on the crowds "to let normal life resume" and stop unauthorised roadblocks.

"Taking up arms will not be tolerated," he added.

The military council also announced a raft of decisions, including:

New heads of the army and the police
A new head of the powerful National Intelligence and Security Service (NISS)
Committees to fight corruption, and to investigate the former ruling party
The lifting of all media restrictions and censorship
The release of police and security officers detained for supporting protesters
A review of diplomatic missions, and the dismissal of Sudan's ambassadors to the US and to the UN in Geneva

What's the background?

Protests began in December over a steep rise in the cost of living but soon developed into a wider call for the removal of Mr Bashir and his government.

Then last Thursday the military removed and detained the veteran leader after nearly 30 years in power.

Coup leader Defence Minister Awad Ibn Auf announced the military would oversee a two-year transitional period followed by elections and imposed a three-month state of emergency.

But demonstrators vowed to stay on the streets unless there was an immediate switch to civilian government.

Mr Ibn Auf himself stood down the next day, as did the feared security chief Gen Salah Gosh.

Lt Gen Abdel Fattah Abdelrahman Burhan was then named as head of the transitional military council, to become Sudan's third leader in as many days.

In a televised address on Saturday, Gen Burhan vowed to "uproot the regime", pledging to respect human rights, end a night curfew, release political prisoners immediately, dissolve all provincial governments, try those who had killed demonstrators and tackle corruption.

Mr Bashir's whereabouts are unknown, but military leaders said he was in a secure place.

The military council has said it will not extradite him to face accusations in the International Criminal Court, although he could well be put on trial in Sudan.

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2019-04-15 09:55:04Z
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New Zealand nurse held captive by ISIS group in Syria for 6 years may be alive: report - Fox News

The New York Times on Sunday became the first media organization to name Louisa Akavi.

New Zealand’s foreign minister confirmed Monday that a New Zealand nurse has been held captive by the Islamic State group in Syria for almost six years, information long kept secret for fear her life might be at risk.

The status of nurse and midwife Louisa Akavi, now 62, is unknown, but her employer, the International Committee of the Red Cross, says it has received recent eyewitness reports suggesting she might be alive.

The New York Times on Sunday became the first media organization to name Akavi, ending a more than 5 ½-year news blackout imposed by New Zealand’s government and the Red Cross with the cooperation of international media.

The collapse of the Islamic State group has raised hopes that Akavi and the two Syrian drivers kidnapped with her might now be discovered.

In a statement, the ICRC said that as recently as December, Akavi may have been seen by at least two people at a clinic in Sousa, one of the Islamic State group’s last outposts. There were also reported sightings in 2016 and 2017, Red Cross officials said.

“We continue to work together (with the Red Cross) to locate and recover her,” New Zealand Foreign Minister Winston Peters said. “This has been a uniquely complex and difficult case. “Louisa went to Syria with the ICRC to deliver humanitarian relief to people suffering as a result of a brutal civil war and ISIS occupation.”

“Where a New Zealander is held by a terrorist organization, the government takes all appropriate action to recover them. That is exactly what we have done here,” Peters said.

Peters said New Zealand had sent a small multi-agency team, including special forces, to Iraq to gather information on Akavi.

“This has involved members of the New Zealand Defense Force, drawn from the Special Operations Force, and personnel have visited Syria from time to time as required,” he said. “This noncombat team was specifically focused on locating Louisa and identifying opportunities to recover her.”

Akavi was taken captive in 2013 in the city of Idlib in northwest Syria. It is believed she was offered for ransom and may have been used as a human shield. New Zealand’s government believed at one point that she may have died. But there are hopes her medical skills might have caused her captors to spare her.

Akavi’s family said they miss her and are proud of the work to which she’s dedicated her life.

“We think about her every day and hope she feels that and finds strength in that,” said a video statement issued by family spokesman Tuaine Robati. “We know she is thinking of us and that she will be worried about us too.”

New Zealand’s government is reported to have opposed the ICRC’s decision to allow The New York Times to report Akavi’s name and nationality.

At a news conference Monday, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern refused to answer questions about Akavi but indicated she was disappointed the ICRC had gone public before her fate had been learned.

“You’ll forgive me, I hope, for not commenting on that case,” Ardern said. “It remains the government’s view that it would be preferable if the case was not in the public domain.”

Dominik Stillhart, director of operations for the ICRC, said the organization had decided to permit publication in the hope it would elicit new information on her whereabouts.

“We have not spoken publicly before today because from the moment Louisa and the others were kidnapped, every decision we made was to maximize the chances of winning their freedom,” Stillhart said in a statement. “With Islamic State group having lost the last of its territory, we felt it was now time to speak out.”

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He said the collapse of the Islamic State group in Syria may mean new opportunities to learn more about Akavi’s situation and the ICRC also feared it risked losing track of her in the aftermath of IS’s collapse.

Akavi is of Cook Islands descent and lives in Otaki, a small town north of Wellington. She is the longest-held captive in the history of the International Committee of the Red Cross, and Stillhart called her “a true and compassionate humanitarian.”

He said strenuous efforts had been made to secure her release. Negotiations in 2013 and 2014 were not successful. In 2014, she was among a group of hostages moved by IS only hours before a raid by U.S. special forces that aimed to free them.

“We call on anyone with information to please come forward,” Stillhart said. “If our colleagues are still being held, we call for their immediate and unconditional release.”

Stillhart later defended the ICRC’s decision to publicize Akavi’s case after years of silence.

“Every decision was to maximize the chance of Louisa’s freedom ... and every decision was coordinated with the New Zealand government,” Stillhart said at a news conference in Geneva. “That included the difficult decision to go public. We think with new information from the public, we can redirect the investigation for Louisa.”

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2019-04-15 08:54:41Z
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One of four remaining Yangtze turtles dies in China - BBC News

One of the world's rarest turtles, a Yangtze giant softshell, has died in China, leaving just three remaining.

Also known as Rafetus swinhoei, the female turtle died in the Suzhou zoo in southern China.

Experts had tried to artificially inseminate the creature, which was over 90 years old, for a fifth time shortly before she died.

The species is critically endangered due to hunting, overfishing and the destruction of its habitat.

One male is left in the Chinese zoo while two other turtles live in the wild in Vietnam. The elusive nature of the turtle means it has been difficult to identify the latter's gender.

Local staff and international experts had attempted to artificially inseminate the female 24 hours before she died.

They said there were no complications from the operation and she had been in fine health after the procedure, but deteriorated the next day.

The cause of her death is being investigated and the turtle's ovarian tissue was collected for future research.

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2019-04-15 07:57:01Z
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Ecuador's president says Assange tried to use its embassy to spy - Reuters

FILE PHOTO: WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange is seen as he leaves a police station in London, Britain April 11, 2019. REUTERS/Peter Nicholls/File Photo

LONDON (Reuters) - WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange repeatedly violated his asylum conditions and tried to use the Ecuadorian embassy in London as a center for spying, Ecuador’s President Lenin Moreno told Britain’s Guardian newspaper.

London police dragged Assange out of the embassy on Thursday after his seven-year asylum was revoked, paving the way for his extradition to the United States for one of the biggest ever leaks of classified information.

Assange’s relationship with his hosts collapsed after Ecuador accused him of leaking information about Moreno’s personal life.

Moreno denied to the Guardian that he had acted as a reprisal for the way in which documents about his family had been leaked. He said he regretted that Assange had used the embassy to interfere in other country’s democracies.

“Any attempt to destabilize is a reprehensible act for Ecuador, because we are a sovereign nation and respectful of the politics of each country,” Moreno told the Guardian by email.

“We cannot allow our house, the house that opened its doors, to become a center for spying,” the Guardian quoted Moreno as saying.

Supporters of Assange said Ecuador had betrayed him at the behest of Washington, that the ending of his asylum was illegal and that it marked a dark moment for press freedom.

Reporting by Guy Faulconbridge; editing by Michael Holden

Our Standards:The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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2019-04-15 07:03:00Z
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John Oliver Reluctantly Defends Julian Assange From U.S. Effort To Extradite Him - Deadline

April 14, 2019 10:13pm

John Oliver, the latest late-night TV show host to tackle Julian Assange’s arrest by British police from the Ecuadorian Embassy in London, is the first to call WikiLeaks’ founder “the most controversial Australian export since Vegemite.”

After nearly seven years holed up at the embassy, Brit police literally carried him out like a rolled up carpet on Thursday.

Oliver was among those who noticed CNN’s initial coverage focused on Assange’s “bedraggled beard,” “lengthy hair,” and that he looked “tired” and “much older” than he did when he first entered the embassy, calling it “a weird tone to take on story that is this important.”

“His arrest sparks a difficult debate about the efficacy of journalistic protections in the age of cyber espionage, but look how bad he looks! He like a peeled potato rolled in spider webs! He looks like Kenneth Branagh’s ghost!” Oliver mocked.

Assange’s arrest, Oliver insisted, is a “big deal.”

Among reasons Ecuador wanted him gone, Assange did not make life easy for his hosts. Among their complaints: his cat making a mess, Assange skateboarded in the halls, he stole wifi, his indoor soccer games destroyed embassy equipment, and the government had to require him to start cleaning his bathroom.

“It is easy to dislike Julian Assange,” Oliver agreed, reminding viewers he first fled to the embassy to escape extradition to Sweden on rape charges – charges Assange has denied.

And, in addition to valuable information WikiLeaks has helped release, the org also “recklessly published sensitive personal data of hundreds of ordinary people, potentially putting lives at risk,” Oliver said. And, who can forget that WikiLeaks publication of hacked emails helped to elect Donald Trump.

“You are allowed to dislike him,” Oliver told his viewers. “But America’s current attempt to extradite him hangs on a specific charge many journalism advocates find unsettling.”

The DOJ wants him extradited to the U.S. for alleged conspiracy to commit computer intrusion, stemming from correspondence with Chelsea Manning before the publication of sensitive documents 2010.

“On its face, it currently seems more than a little flimsy,” the HBO late-night host said. “Because the indictment’s language seems to criminalize a broad range of legally protected and common journalistic activity.”

And, while it’s not clear what else Assange might be charged with, or if the UK will extradite him, the U.S.’s efforts are worrying, because “journalistic freedoms maybe under threat,” Oliver warned.

“And, unfortunately, in order to protect them… I’m really sorry, everyone, but it might actually be time to defend Julian Assange.”

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2019-04-15 05:13:00Z
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Minggu, 14 April 2019

Sudan crisis: Military council arrests former government members - BBC News

Sudan's transitional military council has arrested members of the former government and promised not to disperse protesters.

A spokesman also urged the opposition to pick the next prime minister and vowed to implement their choice.

Months of protests in Sudan led to the ouster and arrest of long-time leader Omar al-Bashir on Thursday.

Demonstrators have vowed to stay on the streets until there is an immediate move to civilian rule.

A sit-in is continuing outside the defence ministry in the capital Khartoum.

What did the military council say?

In a press conference on Sunday, spokesman Maj Gen Shams Ad-din Shanto said the military council was "ready to implement" whatever civilian government the opposition parties agreed.

"We won't appoint a PM. They'll choose one," he said, referring to opposition and protest groups.

He also said the army would not remove protesters from their sit-in by force, but called on protesters "to let normal life resume" and stop unauthorised roadblocks.

"Taking up arms will not be tolerated," he added.

The military council also announced a raft of decisions, including:

New heads of the army and the police
A new head of the powerful National Intelligence and Security Service (NISS)
Committees to fight corruption, and to investigate the former ruling party
The lifting of all media restrictions and censorship
The release of police and security officers detained for supporting protesters
A review of diplomatic missions, and the dismissal of the Sudanese ambassador to the US and to Switzerland

What's been happening in Sudan?

Protests against a rise in the cost of living began in December but soon developed into a wider call for the removal of Mr Bashir and his government.

On Thursday the military removed and detained the veteran leader after nearly 30 years in power.

The coup leader, Defence Minister Awad Ibn Auf, announced the military would oversee a two-year transitional period followed by elections and imposed a three-month state of emergency.

But demonstrators vowed to stay in the streets regardless, demanding an immediate switch to civilian government.

Mr Ibn Auf himself stood down the next day, as did the feared security chief Gen Salah Gosh.

Lt Gen Abdel Fattah Abdelrahman Burhan was then named as head of the transitional military council, to become Sudan's third leader in as many days.

But the Sudan Professionals Association (SPA), which has been spearheading the demonstrations, said the council's response "did not achieve any of the demands of the people" and urged protests to continue.

Among its demands are the restructuring of state security, the arrest of "corrupt leaders" and the dissolution of militias that operated under former President Bashir.

The whereabouts of Sudan's former leader is currently unknown, but the coup leaders said he was in a secure place.

Mr Bashir has been indicted on charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity in Darfur by the International Criminal Court.

But the military council has said it will not extradite him, although he could well be put on trial in Sudan.

Mr Bashir's National Congress Party on Saturday called his overthrow unconstitutional, and demanded that the military council release the party's imprisoned members.

Maj-Gen Shanto said that the former ruling party would have no part in the civilian transitional government but could field candidates in the next elections.

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https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-47929137

2019-04-14 22:21:37Z
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Sudan military vows to reform intelligence service amid protests - Aljazeera.com

Sudan's ruling military council has announced a raft of concessions aimed at appeasing protesters calling for a civilian-led transition to democracy following the overthrow of longtime ruler Omar al-Bashir.

Shams Eldin Kabashi, a spokesman for the council, vowed on Sunday to restructure the widely feared National Intelligence and Security Service (NISS), a key demand from the political parties and movements behind the months-long protests that triggered Bashir's removal by the armed forces.

Activists accuse NISS forces of violently cracking down on protests as well as an ongoing sit-in outside the army headquarters, killing dozens of protesters and wounding hundreds more.

Kabashi said the council has appointed Lieutenant General Abu Bakr Mustafa to head the NISS following the recent resignation of Salah Abdallah Mohamed Saleh, known as Salah Gosh.

He also announced the removal of General Awad Ibn Auf from his post as defence minister.

The general had initially assumed power, taking oath as the head of a military council that he said would rule the country for a two year-transitional period, but was forced to step down a day later in the face of mass protests for a civilian-led transitional administration.

Ibn Auf was replaced by Lieutenant General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, who pledged on Saturday to "uproot the regime" of al-Bashir, release detained protesters and hold talks with all political parties and groups behind the months-long protests.

Sudan's military holds talks with protesters as curfew lifted (2:46)

Hours later, a 10-member delegation representing the protesters delivered their demand to the council. They included an immediate handover of power to a civilian-led body, reforms to the NISS and release of protesters.

'We will never leave'

On Sunday, the Sudanese Professionals Association (SPA), which spearheaded the protests, said they will keep up street demonstrations until a civilian transitional government, as outlined in the so-called Declaration of Freedom and Change signed by various political and professional groups in January, is formed.

In a nine-point list of demands, the SPA also called for a freeze on the assets of top officials of al-Bashir's government, dismissal of all top judges and prosecutors, and the arrest of al-Bashir, Gosh and Mohamed Atta, a former NISS head who was appointed as Sudan's envoy to Washington last year.

In his statement, Kabashi said Atta had been sacked from his post.

Khartoum's ambassador in Geneva had also been removed, he said, adding that all police officers arrested for participating in the protests would also be freed. The council will also form a committee to take over the assets of al-Bashir's party, he added.

Al Jazeera's Hiba Morgan, reporting from the capital, Khartoum, said the military's concessions amounted to "less than what some people wanted".

Reforming NISS, while significant, "was not the main issue standing between the two sides - the main issue was how will the military council operate under the transitional government," said Morgan.

"There were concerns from the political parties that the military council will oversee the government and that's something they do not want. They want an independent government in which the military council serves only as a protector."

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Protesters at the Khartoum sit-in, meanwhile, said the council's reforms did not go far enough and called on the ruling body to hand over power immediately.

"We will never leave this square, our only [means of] power to put pressure on this military council is our sit-in here, so we will continue until we achieve all our demands," Randa Mohamed, 22, told Al Jazeera.

Fellow demonstrator Mohamed Atia, 39, agreed.

"We still need the power to be transferred to the civilians and [for] the dissolution of the ruling party and the militias of the ruling party [to take place]," Atia said.

Sudanese protesters demand the country's military rulers 'immediately' hand power over to a civilian government [Ahmed Mustafa / AFP]

Earlier on Sunday, the military council met with some political parties in Khartoum and urged them to agree on an "independent figure" to lead Sudan as prime minister.

"We, your brothers in the armed forces, are asking you to support us with your initiatives to brave through the transitional period," said General Yasir Atta. "We need and hope all of you within a short span of time come to a consensus and agreement upon one figure, a patriotic independent person, to lead the government."

The military wants to hold on to the interior and defence ministries in any transitional government, he said.

Sudan's foreign ministry, meanwhile, urged the international community to back the country's military council to help facilitate a "democratic transition".

Al-Burhan was "committed to having a complete civilian government and the role of the council will be to maintain the sovereignty of the country," the ministry said, adding that he intended to prepare an environment for political parties and civil society to build themselves up "in order to have a peaceful transition of power".

On Sunday, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates issued statements in support of the transitional military council.

Saudi Arabia said it "stands by the Sudanese people" and called on all Sudanese "to give priority to the national interest" of their country. The UAE called on the Sudanese "to work for protecting legitimacy and ensuring a peaceful transfer of power".

Saudi King Salman ordered an unspecified package of aid for Sudan that includes petroleum products, wheat and medicine.

Mohammed Amin contributed to this report from Khartoum

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2019-04-14 21:21:00Z
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