Fears of a new crisis after Algeria arrested 61 Moroccans

Estimates of the number of victims of the aerial bombardment that targeted gold mining sites near the Sudanese-Egyptian border rose to more than 200 dead and dozens wounded and missing. Amid conflicts in the death toll and increasing ambiguity regarding the number of missing persons, the Sudanese Transitional Sovereignty Council announced, on Monday, the formation of a committee to investigate the incident.

The National Umma Party and the Darfur Victims Advocacy Organization estimated the losses at about 200 dead and 120 wounded, while the Emergency Lawyers Authority announced the killing of 72 mineral prospectors. As for the Sudan Doctors Network, it indicated that 13 people were killed and 28 others were injured, at a time when no official statistics were issued regarding the actual numbers of victims.

According to witness accounts, the raids targeted the North Valley and Jabal Al-Aqeedat area near Al-Ansari Market within the Sudanese border, on Saturday morning, October 10. Survivors said, in media statements, that the bombing hit worker camps and exploration wells, causing some of them to collapse on workers inside, while others fled to the surrounding mountains and caves. The identity of the aircraft or the exact location of the attack have not been independently verified.

In the first official Sudanese position announced, the Sovereignty Council, headed by Sudanese Army Commander Abdel Fattah Al-Burhan, announced its mercy on the victims and offered its condolences for “the Sudanese citizens who died in the painful accident to which a number of Sudanese miners were exposed in the border region between Sudan and the Arab Republic of Egypt,” announcing in a statement that its president “issued a decision to form a fact-finding committee... to investigate the circumstances of the accident, and to determine all the circumstances and facts related to it.” Submitting a report on the results of the investigation.

The Council affirmed the state’s responsibility to protect citizens and the necessity of revealing the facts and “protecting and respecting borders.” It said in a statement that the leadership of Sudan and Egypt have remained in contact since the incident occurred, to protect lives, know its circumstances, and inform public opinion, while preserving the relationship between the two peoples.

Despite the political, human rights, and popular criticism of the official silence, which was described as “prolonged,” the statement merely described the incident as a “painful accident,” without mentioning an air strike or identifying those responsible for it. It also did not announce a toll of victims or a date for completing the investigation.

Popularly, Sudanese activists circulated clips that they said documented the effects of the bombing, and miners criticized the lack of protection and assistance despite paying taxes and fees, while political, union and popular organizations condemned the raids and demanded an independent investigation, criticizing the silence of the Sudanese authorities before the Sovereignty Council’s statement was issued.

In an unusual step in political life in Mauritania, a number of ministers who left the government addressed public opinion with farewell messages that were published in local media, circulated on social media, and sparked widespread reactions.

The messages of the ministers leaving the government unanimously affirmed and renewed loyalty to President Mohamed Ould Sheikh Ghazouani and his electoral program, “My ambition for the homeland,” without indicating any reasons that might have been behind the dismissal decision.

The message of former Interior Minister Mohamed Ahmed Ould Mohamed El Amin, who held the portfolio since April 2022, was the longest and most detailed, and sparked widespread discussion after it was published on Sunday evening.

In his message, which he called a “message of thanks and appreciation,” Ould Mohamed Ahmed addressed the leaders of the security services, governors, governors, and mayors, and then presented the outcome of his sector in security, regional administration, public freedoms, civil status, and decentralization.

Among his achievements, he mentioned a new law for parties, three political dialogues, enabling communities to elect representatives in Parliament for the first time, exceeding 95 percent of registration in the population registry, creating 19 municipalities, and doubling the allocations of the Regional Development Fund.

He said that “the succession of officials in administrative positions does not mean changing the major national goals,” and he congratulated his chosen successor, Ould Ahmed Boussif, and thanked the president for his “great confidence, generous care, and luminous guidance.”

The new presidency of the Libyan House of Representatives faces a difficult test in a country where political and economic crises are intertwined, and where hopes of emerging from the state of division that has persisted for years are declining, in conjunction with escalating living pressures on citizens.

Readings varied about the priorities of the new presidency. One team expects that the political settlement file - specifically the implementation of the “4+4” agreement concluded between the two sides of the conflict in the country under UN auspices at the end of August - will top its list of concerns, as a way out of ending the political and governmental division that has been ongoing for years, through the formation of a unified executive authority that will pave the way for elections within two years.