GENEVA: The United Nations said Tuesday that it expected more than two million people displaced in war-ravaged Sudan to return to Khartoum within the next six months, if security conditions allow.
Fighting erupted in Sudan on April 15, 2023 between the army, led by Abdel Fattah Al-Burhan, and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces, headed by his former deputy Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo.
As the world marks the two-year anniversary of the devastating conflict, which has killed tens of thousands of people and uprooted around 13 million, the UN’s International Organization for Migration noted the need to prepare for many of the displaced to begin returning home to Khartoum.
The capital city became a battleground almost from the start, but since the army recaptured it last month, the agency said “we are seeing people returning, we are seeing hope coming.”
“Our estimate in IOM is that over the next six months, we will have 2.1 million returning to the Khartoum capital,” Mohamed Refaat, its chief of mission in Sudan, told reporters in Geneva, speaking from Port Sudan.
This calculation, he said, was “based on the numbers we understand that... left the capital when the war started.”
“So we estimate that 31 percent of... IDPs (internally displaced people) in Sudan after the war are actually coming from Khartoum,” he said, adding that the agency expected around half of them to “be returning back to Khartoum.”
The returns, he said, would depend on “the security situation and... the availability of services on the ground.”
Getting the city ready for a mass influx will be a challenge, Refaat acknowledged.
“We see that some spots in the Khartoum itself have been cleaned, but the process I’m sure will take longer,” he said, adding that “the electricity system in the whole Khartoum has been destroyed.”
Refaat also warned that “as we see people are returning, the war is far from stopped,” with thousands still being displaced elsewhere in the country, especially in the Darfur region.
“The conflict has to stop, and we need to put all effort for this conflict to stop,” he said.
But Refaat acknowledged that the funds raised to address Sudan’s towering needs were far from sufficient.
The IOM unveiled a response plan Tuesday asking for nearly $29 million to reach around half a million people in Khartoum, including returnees, he said.
Over 2m displaced people to return to Khartoum over six months: UN
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Over 2m displaced people to return to Khartoum over six months: UN
- “Our estimate in IOM is that over the next six months, we will have 2.1 million returning to the Khartoum capital,” Mohamed Refaat, its chief of mission in Sudan, said
- The returns, he said, would depend on “the security situation and... the availability of services on the ground“
STC announces dissolution
RIYADH: The Yemeni separatist group Southern Transitional Council (STC) has announced it will dissolve following talks in Saudi Arabia. Several STC members are in Riyadh for discussions on ending unrest in southern Yemen. The group praised Saudi Arabia’s efforts, while former STC leader Aidarous al-Zubaidi, now wanted by the Presidential Council for high treason, has fled Yemen and has not participated in the talks.
A Yemeni source told Arab News: “this announcement and ease shown in the televised video statement shows that in fact Al Zubaidi was the obstacle, and that most southerners are open to resolving their matter via dialogue and discussion”
The members of the Southern Transitional Council (STC) in Yemen spoke during the Riyadh Southern Dialogue Conference on Friday.
During the meeting, the Council said military operations in Hadramout and Mahra harmed the Southern cause in Yemen.
The Council said they did not participate in the decision for the military operations in Hadramout and Mahra.
"We hope to reach a vision and concept for resolving the Southern issue at the Riyadh Conference,” said the Council.
The Council thanked Saudi Arabia for hosting the dialogue conference in Riyadh.
- Below is a full translation of the STC announcement as reported by the Arabic language Yemeni news agency (SABA):
Announcement of the Dissolution of the Southern Transitional Council
The Presidency of the Southern Transitional Council, the Supreme Executive Leadership, the General Secretariat, and the other affiliated bodies convened a meeting to assess the recent unfortunate events in the governorates of Hadramout and Al-Mahrah, and the subsequent rejection of all efforts toward de-escalation and resolution. These developments have led to serious and painful consequences. Referring to the statement issued by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia regarding its sponsorship of a southern dialogue to resolve the southern issue—and in order to safeguard the future of the southern cause and the right of the southern people to restore their state according to their will and aspirations, and to preserve peace and social security in the South and the broader region—we make the following declaration:
The Southern Transitional Council was established to carry the cause of the southern people, represent them, and lead them toward achieving their aspirations and restoring their state. We founded it with the belief that the goal was to achieve this mission—not to cling to it as a means of gaining power, monopolizing decision-making, or excluding others.
Since we were not involved in the decision to launch the military operation in Hadramout and Al-Mahrah—an operation that harmed southern unity and damaged relations with the coalition led by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, which has made and continues to make great sacrifices and provide ongoing political, economic, and military support—the continued existence of the Council no longer serves the purpose for which it was created. In light of this and our historical responsibility toward the southern cause, we hereby announce the dissolution of the Southern Transitional Council, the disbanding of all its main and subsidiary bodies, and the closure of all its offices inside and outside the country. We will instead work to achieve our just southern goal by preparing for and participating in the comprehensive southern conference under the Kingdom’s sponsorship.
We commend the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia for its clear and explicit commitments and the sincere concern it has shown for our cause in seeking solutions that meet the aspirations and will of the southern people.
We call on all active southern figures and leaders to engage in the path of the comprehensive southern dialogue conference, hoping that the participants will reach a vision and framework to resolve the southern issue and fulfill the people’s aspirations through their free will, and to establish an inclusive southern framework.
From this platform, we call on the people of the South, our colleagues in the capital Aden, and all the governorates of our beloved South to recognize the gravity of this moment, the sensitivity of the current phase, and the importance of uniting efforts to preserve our gains and protect the South from chaos or instability.
We reaffirm our continued commitment to serving the just and legitimate cause of the southern people and achieving their aspirations according to their will. We also extend our gratitude to the leadership and people of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia for hosting the comprehensive southern dialogue conference and for their support of the South, its cause, and its people across all fields and stages.
