Situation in Sudan (per 8 August)

  • Abdel Fattah Al-Burhan, head of the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF), reportedly plans to relocate his headquarters from Port Sudan to Omdurman, from where he will lead military operations.
  • According to the statement by Yasir al-Atta, SAF’s assistant army commander, Al-Burhan’s interest is primarily in fighting the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) rather than ruling the country.
  • Heavy rains and flooding caused a collapse of buildings in Abu Hamad town in River Nile state on Tuesday with the number of victims rising to 17. Sudan has been grappling with torrential rains and flooding during this rainy season since the beginning of July.
  • Two barrel bombs launched by SAF hit residential neighbourhoods of the Zamzam camp in North Darfur on Monday morning, injuring four children, destroying houses and causing fear in the camp.
  • The Zamzam camp emergency room strongly condemns the attack and urges authorities to remove one of the bombs that did not explode.

Situation in Ethiopia (per 8 August)

  • At least 13 people, including children, were killed in a landslide in Wolaita Zone, South Ethiopia, caused by heavy rains and flooding  on Monday.
  • Over 300 people have been evacuated from the area “as a precaution and in anticipation of yet another likely major landslide”, said Samuel Fola, Wolaita Zone chief administrator.
  • A brother of Batte Urgessa, an Oromo opposition politician who was killed last year,  and 11 other people linked to Urgessa have been detained by Ethiopian security authorities without any charges, said Human Rights Watch (HRW).
  • This “suggests that the government is more concerned about preventing the truth from coming out than uncovering it,” said Laetitia Bader, adding that the authorities should immediately release detained persons and prompt a full impartial investigation of Urgessa’s murder.
  • 16 students who were kidnapped outside Garba Guracha town in Oromia on 3 July have been released after ransom was paid by their families ranging between 100,000 and 500,000 Ethiopian Birr. Over 150 students remain in the hands of their abductors who are extorting money for their release.
  • The released students recounted violence, mistreatment, and lack of food while they were captured.

International Situation (per 8 August)

  • A Dutch court ruled against Myra Koomen, a former Dutch politician and a spokesperson for the Federation of Eritrean Communities (FEC), who claimed that the violent riots which took place in The Hague in February were carried out (amongst others) by Ethiopians from Tigray.
  • The Tigray community in the Netherlands initiated the court case against Koomen and the FEC as they found the statement liabelous. The judge, ruling in favour of the Tigray community, said that the statement  that Tigrayans were involved, was not sufficiently supported by the facts.
  • Koomen has rectified her statements and issued a correction on her websites and social media accounts.
  • The Tigray community in the Netherlands cancelled an event scheduled to take place in Amsterdam last weekend due to reported complaints from the Eritrean PFDJ members.
  • The UN Security Council (UNSC) met on Tuesday to discuss the worsening situation in Sudan amid recent reports of  famine in the Zamzam camp, North Darfur,  for internally displaced persons.
  • UN officials pleaded with the UNSC for greater efforts to secure humanitarian access and resources to Sudan’s population that is facing acute hunger.
  • In the near future, the International Criminal Court (ICC) aims to issue applications for arrest warrants for persons responsible for atrocities committed in Darfur since the beginning of the conflict in Sudan, said Karim Khan, ICC Prosecutor, in a briefing to the UNSC.
  • Khan reassured that ICC continues its investigations and collection of evidence adding that there has been “significant progress made”. 
  • Kenyan police have been patrolling streets of Nairobi and setting roadblocks amid another announced protest calling for the resignation of Kenyan President William Ruto today. Thousands of people are expected to participate in the so-called Nane Nane March (eight eight in Swahili).
  • Adré border crossing between Sudan and Chad will remain closed for suspicion of smuggling weapons and fuel to aid RSF, said  Al-Harith Idris, Sudanese Ambassador to the UN, on Tuesday.
  • The international community has been pushing for re-opening of the Adré border crossing as it is crucial for delivery of humanitarian aid to Darfur. 
  • The US Secretary of State, Antony Blinken, called with Abdel Fattah Al-Burhan, SAF chief, urging him to take part in the planned ceasefire talks in Switzerland on 14 August. Al-Burhan stated on X “the necessity of addressing the concerns of the Sudanese government before starting any negotiations”.

Refugee and Migration Situation (per 8 August)

  • 2,500 Sudanese refugees who have been hiding in a forest in Amhara region, Ethiopia, since May are planning to leave the forest on foot and return back to Sudan’s border area with Ethiopia, said the Coordination Committee for the refugees stranded in Ethiopia.
  • The group of Sudanese refugees refused to be relocated by UNHCR and Ethiopian Refugees and Returnees Service to the new Aftit refugee site in Amhara region, as they fear for their security.
  • Widespread human rights violations against migrants and refugees at the borders of EU member states are not properly investigated, warned the EU Agency for Fundamental Rights (FRA).
  • “Europe has a duty to treat everyone at the borders fairly, respectfully and in full compliance with human rights law,”  said Sirpa Rautio, the FRA director.
  • More than 4,000 asylum seekers in Belgium are living without any shelter, which they are entitled to. Some people have been waiting for months despite a court ruling in their favour.  
  • An opening of two Italian centres in Albania for processing asylum applications has been delayed due to reported delays in construction. Italy made a deal with Albania last year in its efforts to curb migration.

Links of interest

Sudan army chief to lead operations from Omdurman

Torrential rains kill 17 in war-torn northern Sudan

Sudan army bombs famine-stricken North Darfur camp

At least 13 killed after deadly landslide in southern Ethiopia

Ethiopia: Free Brother of Slain Opposition Politician

X: #Ethiopia: 16 students released after ransom payment following mass kidnapping in #Oromia

Former politician Myra Koomen must rectify her statements about the instigators of the Eritrean riots

Uitspraken: Rechtbank Amsterdam

Kenyans vow to ‘take back’ their country on August 8

Sudan reiterates rejection to open Adré crossing for international aid

US’s Blinken urges Sudanese army to participate in ceasefire talks, State Dept says

Humanitarians urge Security Council to stop ‘freight train of suffering’ in Sudan

ICC vows to hold Darfur perpetrators accountable, arrest warrants coming

2,500 refugees to return to Sudan from Ethiopian forest

EU states ‘not properly investigating’ reports of rights violations at borders

Some 4,000 asylum seekers still waiting for shelter in Belgium

Italy’s plan to open migrant camps in Albania faces more delays

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