A drone targeted an oil warehouse in the city of Wad Madani. The capital of Gezira State in Sudan, for the first time since the army took control of the city last year, and this was followed by an attack on Nyala in the southern Darfur region. The stronghold of the Rapid Support Forces.
Agence France-Presse quoted a witness as saying: “This morning we witnessed a drone bombing oil tanks in the Umm Alila warehouse” east of Wad Madani.
Some parts of the warehouse, which supplies the states of central Sudan, burned during the Rapid Support Forces' control of the resource-rich state in the center of the country, before it was recently rehabilitated. Another witness reported that “the warehouse caught fire,” and that he could see it 3 kilometers away.
To the west, in the city of Nyala; The capital of the South Darfur region, which is a center for the Rapid Support Forces, two explosions occurred after drone attacks. A witness said: “I heard the sound of a plane in the air, and shortly thereafter two explosions occurred,” while another confirmed hearing the sound of two explosions in the city center. A third witness reported that smoke: “rose from the center of Nyala and the Rapid Support Forces surrounded the area and closed the roads around it.”
The attacks come in light of mounting international pressure for a ceasefire in Sudan, with Washington submitting a proposal to the United Nations to expand the scope of the arms embargo imposed on the Darfur region to include the entire country. The proposal includes adding drones to the ban, and increasing the number of United Nations observers.
Drone attacks dominate the course of battles, and have resulted in the deaths of more than 1,100 people during the first half of this year, according to United Nations data.
Egypt is preparing to launch joint development projects in Sudan, including establishing a “new administrative city” in Khartoum, and Ministers of Foreign Affairs Badr Abdel-Ati and Minister of Transport Kamel Al-Wazir are preparing to go there to discuss the necessary arrangements.
Egyptian Assistant Foreign Minister and former ambassador to Sudan, Hani Salah, said on Saturday evening: “There is an upcoming visit by the Egyptian Ministers of Foreign Affairs and Transport to Sudan to begin preparing for the construction of a new administrative capital there.”
Sudan had previously requested the assistance of Egyptian expertise in establishing a “new administrative capital,” and Sudanese Prime Minister Kamel Idris said after talks with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi in Cairo last February that he “discussed ways to strengthen bilateral relations, discussed improving the conditions of Sudanese residing in Egypt, and establishing a new administrative city in Sudan.”
Following a session of government talks between Egyptian Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly and his Sudanese counterpart at the time, the joint statement stated that “the Egyptian side welcomed the Sudanese side’s request to benefit from Egyptian expertise in establishing a new administrative city, in line with the distinguished Egyptian experience in this field, and in support of reconstruction efforts in the brotherly Republic of Sudan.”
The proposal to establish a new administrative capital in Sudan was referred to again by Ambassador Hani Salah, who said during the farewell ceremony of the Sudanese ambassador in Cairo, Imad al-Din Adawi, on Saturday evening, that the Egyptian Ministers of Foreign Affairs and Transport “will visit Khartoum soon,” and pointed out that “among the goals of the visit is to begin preparing for the construction of a new administrative capital in Sudan.”
The “new capital” proposal comes at a time when Sudan is working to recover from the effects of internal war, develop the infrastructure damaged by the armed conflict, and begin the reconstruction phases.
Egyptian-Sudanese cooperation continues in the fields of electricity, and is developing in other fields and sectors to serve the interests of both countries, according to Salah.
Last July, the Sudanese Prime Minister held a government meeting during which he was informed of the arrangements for a visit by the Egyptian Minister of Transport to his country. The statement issued by the Sudanese government at the time indicated that the meeting “dealt with the agreements that will be signed with the Egyptian side to implement the projects of the administrative capital, one million homes, and land roads,” in addition to procedures for enhancing land transport between the two countries.
The former Sudanese Foreign Minister, Ali Youssef Al-Sharif, said that the Sudanese government is planning to establish new urban communities within the stages of post-war reconstruction. He added to Asharq Al-Awsat: “Khartoum aims to establish a new administrative city similar to the new capital in Egypt,” in addition to “establishing a million new homes within Sudanese cities.”
He went on to say: “The implementation process is scheduled to begin with the end of the internal war,” noting that “the goal of an Egyptian government delegation’s visit to Khartoum soon is to launch executive procedures to begin preparing for these projects.”
The Egyptian government inaugurated the new capital, east of Cairo, and announced it at an economic conference held in March 2015 to be a political and administrative headquarters for the state, and transferred ministries and government institutions to it. The new capital also includes a “diplomatic district” to relocate the headquarters of foreign embassies.
Director of the International Relations Unit at the Sudanese Center for Strategic Thought and Studies, Makki Al-Maghribi, believes that the goal “is not only the establishment of urban facilities, but rather a new vision for the Sudanese state, which includes establishing a new political and administrative capital away from the residential neighborhoods in Khartoum.”
He added to Asharq Al-Awsat: “Egyptian companies will have the largest share in the reconstruction operations, especially with the availability of tools and raw materials in the two countries.”
He said that this step is consistent with the desire of the two countries to develop relations and openness in various fields in a way that achieves results that benefit the two peoples.
The General Union of Teachers in Libya escalated the confrontation with the interim “national unity” government headed by Abdul Hamid Al-Dabaiba, and announced, on Sunday, that all schools would go on a general strike.
This strike, which is supported by the Teachers Union, follows sit-ins that began with the start of the school year on September 13, to demand an increase in salaries, the provision of health insurance, and an improvement in the standard of living.
The General Union adheres to its position in support of thousands of teachers, despite the government’s demands to end the sit-in, following a meeting held by the sub-unions with a government representative on Saturday evening. This sit-in is seen as tightening the noose on the government, which is facing increasing pressure in service and security issues.
According to the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), education in Libya receives the largest share of the national budget, but teachers in the public sector have long expressed their dissatisfaction with their working conditions.
The General Union said in its statement that the representative of the “unity” government asked the attendees to lift the ongoing sit-in until the teachers’ demands began to be implemented, but all those who participated in the meeting “conclusively confirmed that lifting the sit-in will only happen through practical, clear and tangible steps on the ground, represented by the issuance of official decisions, and the start of the actual implementation of some of the demands, and not just with promises.”
The union confirmed that its decision “will remain stemming from the rules and the will of teachers in all cities, and that it will not take any step regarding lifting the sit-in except after returning to the subsidiary unions,” stressing the need to improve living conditions and salaries in a way that befits the teacher’s status, in addition to “activating the laws and legislation that guarantee the teacher’s rights and dignity.”
Libyan schools in many regions expressed their solidarity with the general union’s announcement, and went on strike to demand “legitimate rights and entitlements,” and to affirm “union unity.”
Male and female teachers at Zamzam, Wadi Bi, and Abu Najim schools, in central Libya, near the cities of Sirte and Bani Walid, announced that they are “on a complete strike in solidarity with the rest of Libya’s teachers,” stressing that “the strike will continue until the demands are actually responded to and clear and tangible steps are taken.”
Teachers complain of their low salaries, which in many cases do not exceed two thousand dinars per month (about $313 in the official market and $207 in the parallel market), at a time when they are no longer commensurate with the high cost of living, in addition to the delayed payment of dues and the absence of effective health insurance.
Teachers in Qarabulli, in western Libya, also announced they would go on strike, to demand that teachers’ rights be met and their demands be implemented, in order to achieve fairness in wages among workers in the sector, and the disbursement of differences and financial dues in accordance with applicable legislation.
The Ministry of Education of the “National Unity” government called on municipal education monitors to “immediately begin opening closed schools and receiving students, in order to ensure their basic right to continue their education during the current academic year.”
The Minister of Education, Dr. Muhammad Al-Qaryou, confirmed in an official directive addressed to education monitors that the ministry is “following up with great interest the demands of teachers.” Pointing out that “there are persistent and serious efforts being made by the government to resolve these demands and respond to them.”
In an initial response to developments in the strike, the government began moves to resolve the health insurance file for teachers. The Minister of State for Prime Minister and Council of Ministers Affairs, Mohamed Ben Ghalboun, held a meeting on Sunday to discuss establishing a practical mechanism for implementing the health insurance program for employees of the education and health sectors.
According to what was reported by the “Our Government” platform, the meeting discussed the controls for implementing the program, the target groups, the quality of health services included, in addition to the administrative and financial arrangements to ensure implementation. The attendees also stressed the need to enhance coordination between the competent authorities, to define roles, responsibilities and launch stages, in preparation for starting the project in accordance with the applicable legal and regulatory frameworks.
The meeting was attended by: the Minister of Education and the Minister of Health, Muhammad Al-Ghouj, along with the Director of the Inspection and Follow-up Department in the Cabinet Office, Khalifa Shaliq.
Al-Qariu had discussed, on Sunday morning, with the Superintendent of Education in the Central Municipality of Tripoli, Buthaina Al-Jadi, the latest developments in the progress of the educational process.
The Ministry of Education said that during the meeting, “ways to solve the problems and bottlenecks facing the educational process were reviewed.” Emphasizing that the educational system is integrated, depends on the presence of students in the classroom, and includes the rights and care of teachers.”
At the conclusion of the meeting, Al-Qaryou stressed “the Ministry’s full commitment to safeguarding students’ rights and their educational journey, to ensure their academic future.”
Coinciding with the announcement of the teachers’ strike, the High National Elections Commission in Libya announced, on Sunday, the final results of the elections for the General Union of Teachers Council, which resulted in Ramadan Al-Maqtouf winning the position of head of the Teachers Syndicate.
The former Minister of Education in the “National Unity” government, Musa Al-Magarif, previously announced, in a statement two years ago, that the total number of teachers in Libya is about 700,000, while the number of schools is about 6,400, between government and private, while the number of students is about 2,300,000 students.
