DUBAI: Thousands of men who worked as intelligence operatives under former president Omar Al-Bashir and have ties to his Islamist movement are fighting alongside the army in Sudan’s war, three military sources and one intelligence source said, complicating efforts to end the bloodshed.
The army and a paramilitary force have been battling each other in Khartoum, Darfur and elsewhere for 10 weeks in Africa’s third largest country by area, displacing 2.5 million people, causing a humanitarian crisis and threatening to destabilize the region. Reinforcements for either side could deepen the conflict.
The army has long denied accusations by its rivals in the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) that it depends on discredited loyalists of Bashir, an Islamist long shunned by the West, who was toppled during a popular uprising in 2019.
In response to a question from Reuters for this article, an army official said: “The Sudanese army has no relation with any political party or ideologue. It is a professional institution.”
Yet the three military sources and an intelligence source said thousands of Islamists were battling alongside the army.
“Around 6,000 members of the intelligence agency joined the army several weeks before the conflict,” said a military official familiar with the army’s operations, speaking on condition on anonymity.
“They are fighting to save the country.”
Former officials of the country’s now-disbanded National Intelligence and Security Service (NISS), a powerful institution composed mainly of Islamists, confirmed these numbers.
An Islamist resurgence in Sudan could complicate how regional powers deal with the army, hamper any move toward civilian rule and ultimately set the country, which once hosted Al-Qaeda founder Osama bin Laden, on a path for more internal conflict and international isolation.
Reuters spoke to 10 sources for this article, including military and intelligence sources and several Islamists.
In a development indicative of Islamist involvement, an Islamist fighter named Mohammed Al-Fadl was killed this month in clashes between RSF forces and the army, said family members and Islamists. He had been fighting alongside the army, they said.
Ali Karti, secretary general of Sudan’s main Islamic organization, sent a statement of condolences for Al-Fadl.
’OUR IDENTITY AND OUR RELIGION’
“We are fighting and supporting the army to protect our country from external intervention and keep our identity and our religion,” said one Islamist fighting alongside the army.
Bashir’s former ruling National Congress Party said in a statement it had no ties to the fighting and only backed the army politically.
The army accused the RSF of promoting Islamists and former regime loyalists in their top ranks, a charge the RSF denied. Army chief Abdel Fattah Burhan, who analysts see as a non-ideological army man, has publicly dismissed claims that Islamists are helping his forces. “Where are they?” he cried out to cheering troops in a video posted in May.
The military, which under Bashir had many Islamist officers, has been a dominant force in Sudan for decades, staging coups, fighting internal wars and amassing economic holdings.
But following the overthrow of Bashir, Burhan developed good ties with states that have worked against Islamists in the region, notably the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Saudi Arabia and Egypt. The Gulf states provided Khartoum with significant aid.
Nowadays, former NISS officers also help the military by collecting intelligence on its enemies in the latest conflict. The NISS was replaced by the General Intelligence Service (GIS) after Bashir was toppled, and stripped of its armed “operations” unit, according to a constitutional agreement.
Most of the men from that unit have sided with the army, but some former operations unit members and Islamists who served under Bashir entered the RSF, one army source and one intelligence source said.
“We are working in a very hard situation on the ground to back up the army, especially with information about RSF troops and their deployment,” said a GIS official.
BASHIR-ERA VETERANS
The army outnumbers the RSF nationally, but analysts say it has little capacity for street fighting because it outsourced previous wars in remote regions to militias. Those militias include the “Janjaweed” that helped crush an insurgency in Darfur and later developed into the RSF.
Nimble RSF units have occupied large areas of Khartoum and this week took control of the main base of the Central Reserve Police, a force that the army had deployed in ground combat in the capital. They seized large amounts of weaponry.
But the army, which has depended mainly on air strikes and heavy artillery, could benefit from GIS intelligence gathering skills honed over decades as it tries to root out the RSF.
On June 7, fire engulfed the intelligence headquarters in a disputed area in central Khartoum. Both sides accused the other of attacking the building.
After Burhan and RSF leader General Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, known as Hemedti, carried out a coup in 2021 which derailed a transition to democracy, Hemedti said the move was a mistake and warned it would encourage Islamists to seek power.
Regional heavyweights Saudi Arabia and the UAE had seen Sudan’s transition toward democracy as a way to counter Islamist influence in the region, which they consider a threat.
Publicly, the army has asserted its loyalty to the uprising that ousted Bashir in 2019.
But after the military staged a coup in 2021 that provoked a resurgence of mass street protests, it leaned on Bashir-era veterans to keep the country running. A taskforce that had been working to dismantle the former ruling system was disbanded.
Before the outbreak of violence, Bashir supporters had been lobbying against a plan for a transition to elections under a civilian government. Disputes over the chain of command and the structure of the military under the plan triggered the fighting.
About a week after fighting broke out in April, a video on social media showed about a dozen former intelligence officials in army uniforms announcing themselves as reserve forces.
The footage could not be independently verified by Reuters.
Several senior Bashir loyalists walked free from prison in Bahri, across the Nile from central Khartoum, during a wider prison break amid fighting in late April. The circumstances of their release remain unclear. Bashir is in a military hospital.
Islamists wield hidden hand in Sudan conflict, military sources say
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Islamists wield hidden hand in Sudan conflict, military sources say
- Ex-intelligence agents fighting alongside army-sources
- Army has leant on Bashir-era veterans since 2021 coup
- Conflict pits army general against ex-militia leader
Israel’s Supreme Court opens hearing on security chief’s dismissal
Opposition politicians and non-profit groups have contested the move, which Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara said was “tainted by personal conflict of interest” on the part of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
An Israeli strike hit near a charity kitchen in Gaza as Palestinians gathered for food
- The strike hit around noon as the kitchen was distributing meals to displaced people living in tent camps
- Israel’s campaign has killed more than 1,000 health workers and at least 173 journalists, according to the UN and the Committee to Protect Journalists
DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip: An Israeli strike on Monday hit next to a charity kitchen where Palestinians crowded to receive cooked meals as food supplies dwindle under Israel’s month-long blockade of the Gaza Strip, one of a string of attacks in the territory that killed more than 30 people, mostly women and children, hospital officials said.
Another strike hit a media tent outside a hospital, killing two people, including a local reporter, and wounding six other journalists, medics said. The Israeli military said the strike targeted a man whom it identified as a Hamas militant posing as a journalist.
Video footage showed people carrying the body of a little girl, her face covered with blood, from the blast that witnesses said hit a tent next to the charity kitchen outside the southern city of Khan Younis. Six other people were killed, including two women, and at least 10 people were wounded, hospital officials said.
The strike hit around noon as the kitchen was distributing meals to displaced people living in tent camps. Samah Abu Jamie said her nephew was among those killed and her young daughter was wounded as they waited with their pots to collect meals for their families.
“They were going to get food. I told her, ‘Daughter, don’t go’,” she said. “These were children, and they had nothing with them but a pot. Is a pot a weapon?”
There was no immediate comment from the Israeli military on the strike.
‘Bombed and starved again’
Charity kitchens have been drawing bigger crowds of Palestinians because other sources of food are running out. More than a month ago, Israeli cut off all food, fuel, medicine and other supplies for Gaza’s population of more than 2 million people, forcing aid groups to ration their stocks.
The World Food Program has warned that its supplies to keep kitchens going could be depleted by next week. It had to stop distributing boxes of food staples directly to families last week, spokesperson Abeer Etefa said Monday. The bakeries it ran have also shut down for lack of flour, ending a main source of bread for hundreds of thousands of people.
Since it ended its ceasefire with Hamas last month, Israel has carried out bombardments across Gaza, killing hundreds of people, and ground forces have carved out new military zones. Israel says it is pressuring Hamas to free its remaining hostages, disarm and leave the territory. Under the ceasefire deal, it had agreed to negotiate for the hostages’ release.
The heads of six UN agencies operating in Gaza said in a joint statement Monday that the blockade has left Gaza’s population “trapped, bombed and starved again.” They said Israeli claims that enough supplies entered during the ceasefire “are far from the reality on the ground, and commodities are running extremely low.”
“We are witnessing acts of war in Gaza that show an utter disregard for human life,” they said. “Protect civilians. Facilitate aid. Release hostages. Renew a ceasefire.”
Strikes hit journalists and homes
The strike outside Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis about 2 a.m. set the media tent ablaze, killing Yousef Al-Faqawi, a reporter for the Palestine Today news website, and another man, according to hospital officials.
The military said the strike targeted Hassan Eslaiah, claiming he was a Hamas militant who took part in the Oct. 7, 2023, attack on southern Israel that ignited the war. Eslaiah was among six journalists who were wounded in the strike, according to the hospital.
Eslaiah had occasionally contributed images to The Associated Press and other international media outlets as a freelance journalist, including on Oct. 7. The AP has not worked with him for over a year.
A strike that hit a street in Gaza City killed an emergency room doctor, the Gaza Health Ministry said. Israel’s campaign has killed more than 1,000 health workers and at least 173 journalists, according to the UN and the Committee to Protect Journalists.
Hospitals in Khan Younis and the central town of Deir Al-Balah said they received the bodies of 33 people, 19 of them women and children, from strikes overnight and into the day on Monday, including those from the kitchen and the media tent attack.
Some of the strike reduced houses to rubble. Imad Maghari said the blast that hit his neighbors in Deir Al-Balah at 2 a.m. was like “an earthquake,” followed by the screams of women and children. He said one neighbor lost five family members and another a young boy.
“I don’t know what danger he poses. He’s 7 years old,” Maghari said.
Israel’s military offensive in retaliation for Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack has killed more than 50,000 Palestinians, mostly women and children, according to the Gaza health ministry, whose count does not distinguish between militants and civilians. The offensive has destroyed vast areas of the Gaza Strip and displaced around 90 percent of its population.
Israel says it tries to avoid civilian casualties and blames Hamas for their deaths because it operates among the population.
In the Oct. 7 attack, Hamas-led militants killed about 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and abducted 251 people. They are still holding 59 captives — 24 of whom are believed to be alive — after most of the rest were released in ceasefires or other deals.
Protests in Israel as Netanyahu meets Trump
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met with US President Donald Trump in Washington on Monday to discuss Gaza and other issues.
Dozens of protesters gathered outside Netanyahu’s official residence in Jerusalem to call for an agreement to release the captives. Many fear that Netanyahu’s decision to resume the fighting has put the remaining hostages in grave danger and hope Trump can help broker another deal.
“Now the moment of truth has come,” said Varda Ben Baruch, grandmother of Israeli American hostage Edan Alexander, addressing Netanyahu. “You are in the United States and you have to sit there with President Trump and close a deal so that everyone will be released home.”
Syria appoints finance expert as new central bank governor
- Hasriya takes over from Maysa Sabreen, who had been appointed caretaken governor in late December, after an Islamist-led offensive toppled longtime president Bashar Assad
DAMASCUS: Syria’s interim President Ahmed Al-Sharaa on Monday appointed Abdul Qadir Al-Hasriya as governor of the war-battered country’s central bank, state media reported.
State news agency SANA posted a picture of Hasriya taking the oath as the new central bank chief in front of Sharaa, who on Monday led a first cabinet meeting to “discuss government priorities for the next phase.”
Sharaa announced the formation of a new government on March 29.
Syria’s national currency is considered the foremost challenge for the central bank post, after its value plummeted during 13 years of civil war.
Hasriya takes over from Maysa Sabreen, who had been appointed caretaken governor in late December, after an Islamist-led offensive toppled longtime president Bashar Assad.
Sabreen, a banking expert, had been the first woman to head the financial establishment, having served as first deputy governor since 2018.
Hasriya was born in 1961 and previously lived between the United Arab Emirates and Syria.
He studied at the American University of Beirut before completing his PhD in finance at the University of Durham in Britain.
He previously worked for accountancy firms EY, previously known as Ernst & Young, and Arthur Andersen, as well as having been a member of the financial committee of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies in Geneva.
He was a consultant on reforms to Syria’s central bank in cooperation with the United Nations Development Programme.
The Syrian pound has lost about 90 percent of its value since the start of the civil war in 2011, sinking from 50 pounds to currently around 10,000-12,000 to the US dollar.
Netanyahu says Israel working on fresh Gaza hostage deal
- The recent truce had allowed the return of 33 Israeli hostages, eight of whom were dead, in exchange for the release of some 1,800 Palestinians held in Israeli jails
WASHINGTON: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Monday during a White House appearance with President Donald Trump that new negotiations were in the works aimed at getting more hostages released from Hamas captivity in Gaza.
“We’re working now on another deal that we hope will succeed, and we’re committed to getting all the hostages out,” Netanyahu told reporters in the Oval Office.
Trump for his part said: “We are trying very hard to get the hostages out. We’re looking at another ceasefire, we’ll see what happens.”
Netanyahu added that “the hostages are in agony, and we want to get them all out.”
The Israeli leader, seated next to Trump, highlighted an earlier hostage release agreement negotiated in part by Trump’s regional envoy Steve Witkoff that “got 25 out.”
Netanyahu’s visit follows the collapse of Israel’s six-week truce with Palestinian group Hamas, whose militants launched an unprecedented attack on Israel on October 7, 2023 that triggered the war.
The fragile ceasefire ended with Israel’s resumption of air strikes on Gaza on March 18.
The recent truce had allowed the return of 33 Israeli hostages, eight of whom were dead, in exchange for the release of some 1,800 Palestinians held in Israeli jails.
The prime minister and his government maintain — against the advice of most hostage families — that increased military pressure is the only way to force Hamas to return the remaining hostages, dead or alive.
Of the 251 hostages abducted during Hamas’s October 7 attack, 58 remain in captivity in Gaza, including 34 who the Israeli military says are dead.
Aoun meets US delegation amid latest Israeli strikes
- Motorcyclist killed in southern border area accused by Israel of being Hezbollah commander
- Aoun urges Washington to pressure Israel, as US official insists on reform
BEIRUT: An Israeli strike Monday in southern Lebanon killed one person, according to the Health Ministry, with Israel’s military saying it had “eliminated” a Hezbollah commander.
The attack was conducted by an Israeli drone which targeted a motorcycle repair shop in the border town of Taybeh, with Israel claiming to have struck “a commander in Hezbollah’s artillery system.”
A Lebanese security source said the attack targeted “a motorcycle as its rider stopped in front of a motorcycle repair shop on the Taybeh-Adaisseh road, resulting in his death and a fire breaking out at the location.”
Hezbollah later identified the deceased man as Mohammed Adnan Mansour.
Under the terms of the ceasefire agreement, Hezbollah was meant to withdraw fighters from south of the Litani River and dismantle any remaining military infrastructure there.
Israel was to withdraw all its forces from southern Lebanon but continues to hold five positions that it deems “strategic.”
Lebanon’s President Joseph Aoun has urged Washington to pressure Israel to withdraw from the five border points, saying the ongoing troop presence “complicates the situation.”
On Monday, the Lebanese government received a message from the US confirming the need to disarm Hezbollah and implement necessary reforms for the country to receive financial aid, with Washington anticipating swift action on these issues.
A delegation from the American Task Force on Lebanon, headed by Edward Gabriel, conveyed the message to Aoun.
Aoun said there is no place for any weapons or armed groups outside the framework of the Lebanese state.
Aoun on Monday said the issue needed to be resolved “through communication and dialogue because, in the end, Hezbollah is a Lebanese component.”
Authorities would soon begin drafting a “national security strategy,” he added.
During a meeting with the delegation, Aoun reaffirmed Lebanon’s full commitment to UN Resolution 1701, commending the work of UNIFIL south of the Litani River.
Aoun pointed to “Israeli violations of the ceasefire agreement,” saying that “Israel’s continued presence in the five hills it occupied will not be beneficial for Lebanon and will further complicate the situation.
“Therefore, we call on the US to pressure Israel to withdraw from them,” he added.
“The Lebanese Army, north of the Litani River, dismantled six camps that were under the control of Palestinian groups outside the refugee camps,” Aoun continued.
“They are now empty, and the weapons found were either confiscated or destroyed.”
Aoun confirmed that “the priority is to reduce tension in the south.”
He added: “The will is there, and the UNIFIL are doing their job to the fullest. But we must take into account that they are bearing many responsibilities. Lebanon needs time to resolve matters calmly.”
Aoun noted that “three weeks ago, the government approved the recruitment of 4,500 soldiers to boost our preparedness in the south.”
He emphasized to the American delegation that “reforms and the disarmament of weapons are demands from Lebanon, as well as from the international community and the US. We are committed to working towards these goals, and building trust is a step we have already initiated.”
Gabriel spoke about the “significant recognition of the efforts made by the Lebanese Army and the commendable work of the president.”
He stated: “I understand that your contribution to this was extremely important, and there are still many tasks that need to be completed, which we have been made aware of. The sooner these are carried out, the quicker we can assist you.”
Gabriel revealed that “a funding bill is being prepared in Congress for the upcoming year, along with three significant pieces of legislation included in the economic package.”
Aoun also met on Monday with Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri to discuss the outcomes of the visit of US Deputy Envoy to the Middle East Morgan Ortagus to Lebanon last weekend.
According to a political observer, the emphasis was placed on “expediting the approval of reform laws in parliament” after “constructive and positive” discussions with Ortagus.
Less than 24 hours before the strike on the motorcycle repair shop in Tayah, an Israeli drone targeted a vehicle in Naqoura.
Israeli Army spokesman Avichay Adraee claimed that the “targeted people were two members of Hezbollah who worked on an engineering vehicle in the Zebqin area of southern Lebanon, attempting to reconstruct infrastructure associated with Hezbollah.”
Meanwhile, in more positive news, Pierre Achkar, president of the Federation for Tourism and the Hotel Association in Lebanon, said that Eid Al-Fitr brought a significant influx of Qatari and Kuwaiti tourists to the Mediterranean country.
“While Iraqis had historically been the top tourist group, followed by Jordanians, Egyptians, and Syrians, Qataris and Kuwaitis now make up a larger portion of visitors to Lebanon,” he said.
“The occupancy rate in hotels located in safe areas and downtown reached 70 percent to 80 percent, while others saw 50 percent to 60 percent occupancy rates,” he added.
Achkar expressed hope that, with the increasing number of Gulf tourists, travel bans on Saudi and Emirati nationals visiting Lebanon would be lifted “as their presence could significantly benefit the Lebanese tourism sector.”
Elsewhere protests broke out in Lebanon on Monday across the country in response to a global call for solidarity with the people of Gaza. Many educational institutions and markets went on strike, and the Lebanese military implemented strict security measures around the US Embassy to prevent protesters from gathering in the area.
