Situation in Sudan (per 15 January)

  • At least 33 civilians were killed at the end of last week in Khartoum. 23 people were killed in a bombardment of South Khartoum’s Soba district and 10 people were killed in artillery strikes, stated the Emergency Lawyers group.
  • Seven civilians were killed in bombardments by the Sudan Armed Forces (SAF) in the White Nile state village of Al-Qutaynah, a resistance committee stated.
  • Rapid Support Forces (RSF) reportedly shot down a SAF Mohajer-6 armed drone with a man-portable air-defense systems. The incident raises questions about where RSF is obtaining such advanced military equipment.
  • Essential aid is not reaching people in Sudan due to impediments such as excessive bureaucracy for humanitarian supplies reaching Port Sudan, fighting in essential hubs such as Wad Medani and attacks on aid workers and drivers, states UN Relief Chief Martin Griffiths.
  • From 25 November 2023 to 5 January 2024, ACLED recorded over 640 political violence events and 720 reported fatalities in Sudan, of which the majority were recorded in Khartoum state with over 440 events and 315 deaths.
  • The second-highest number of recorded events took place in Al Jazira state in Sudan, where 70 events and 110 deaths were recorded.
  • ACLED noted a 56% increase in explosions and remote violence in Sudan.
  • Over 7.4 million people have been displaced inside and outside Sudan since the fighting started, reports UN OCHA.
  • Thousands of people fleeing Wad Madani have entered Kassala and Gedaref states, where the humanitarian situation is challenging, states Médecins Sans Frontières.

Situation in Eritrea (per 15 January)

  • Russia will reportedly establish a military base at the Dahlak Islands of Eritrea. The islands are located in the Red Sea  between Eritrea and Yemen and Saudi Arabia.
  • This is reportedly an outcome of the visits of Eritrean President Isaias Afewerki to Moscow in May and July 2023. The plan was first announced in 2018 by Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov.
  • The Soviet Union had a military base in the Dahlak Islands during the reign of Mengistu 1975 to 1991.

Situation in Ethiopia (per 15 January)

  • Most of the local administrations in Amhara have disappeared or have joined Fano, sources note. In some places there is no administrative presence at all from either Fano or the Ethiopian government.
  • In Oromia, most of the roads are still blocked due to the conflict between the OLA and ENDF.
  • A cholera outbreak is occurring mainly in Western Oromia.

Situation in Tigray (per 15 January)

  • People in villages in Tigray are desperately waiting for aid. The little aid that has come in has focused on Internally Displaced Persons from outside of the villages, states a reporter for DW.
  • The reporter visiting the Tigray region saw starving people and people who had not eaten for days, stating that the starvation is obvious as soon as you leave the capital of Mekelle.

Regional Situation (per 15 January)

  • Ethiopian PM Abiy Ahmed is said to be planning to visit Somaliland, to discuss the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between Ethiopia and Somaliland.
  • Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud called on Somalis to “prepare for the defence of our homeland” on Sunday.
  • A senior advisor to President Mohamud stated that Somalia is ready to go to war to prevent Ethiopia from recognising Somaliland.
  • The Sudanese government has withdrawn from the upcoming extraordinary summit of IGAD which is set to be held on 18 January.
  • The Sudanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs states it is dissatisfied with IGAD’s handling of a proposed face-to-face meeting between Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo (Hemedti), which was cancelled by Hemedti.
  • The Ministry further states that a face-to-face meeting with both leaders needs to take place first.

International Situation (per 15 January)

  • The Arab League announced that it will hold an emergency meeting on 17 January over the tensions between Somalia and Ethiopia. The meeting was requested by Somalia.
  • Arab League Deputy Secretary-General Hossam Zaki called the MoU between Ethiopia and Somaliland “unlawful”.
  • The UN Secretary General strongly condemned the attack on Aden Adde International Airport in Mogadishu, Somalia, on 11 January in which a member of the Ugandan United Nations Guard Unit was killed. Al-Shabaab claimed responsibility for the attack.
  • South Sudan and Egypt signed an MoU to enhance military cooperation between the two countries.
  • Clashes broke out between pro-democracy Eritreans and pro-regime Eritreans at an Eritrean festival in Melbourne, Australia. 10 people needed to go to the hospital for injuries.
  • Pro-democracy Eritreans had called for the festival to be cancelled and had called for a peaceful protest.
  • Legal charges have been filed after clashes at an Eritrean event organised by supporters of the Eritrean regime in Stuttgart, Germany, in September 2023.
  • Charges were filed against a 26-year old protester who is accused of among others disturbing the peace and attacking police officers.

Links of interest

Sudan SAF, RSF Fighting Kills At least 33 Civilians Overnight

Seven killed by strike in Sudan’s White Nile State: activists

RSF shoot down Sudan’s Army Mohajer drone

Today’s top news: Occupied Palestinian Territory, Sudan, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Syria, Central Sahel, Ukraine

Sudan: The Rapid Support Forces (RSF) Gains Ground in Sudan

Sudan: Escalating humanitarian needs for more than half a million newly internally displaced people fleeing violence in Wad Madani

Is Putin now acting on plans to build an Eritrean naval base?

Ethiopia’s Tigray region on ‘brink of famine’ | DW News

Ethiopia’s Currency Quandary Places IMF Deal on ‘Knife’s Edge’

‘We are ready for a war’: Somalia threatens conflict with Ethiopia over breakaway region

Sudan’s government pulls out of IGAD Summit, demands prior direct talks

Arab League to convene emergency meeting to discuss tensions between Somalia, Ethiopia

South Sudan, Egypt sign military cooperation pact

Statement attributable to the Spokesperson for the Secretary-General – on Somalia

Staatsanwaltschaft erhebt erste Anklage nach Randale auf Eritrea-Treffen
Nearly 100 people involved in brawl outside Melbourne community centre after protest against ‘corrupt’ regime in African nation of Eritrea turns nasty

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