Photo : Ibrahim Mohammed Ishak, Reuters
NIAS Area Studies
AFRICA MONITOR
Photo : Ibrahim Mohammed Ishak, Reuters
IN BRIEF
by Anu Maria Joseph
Sudan: Fighting spreads to Port Sudan
On 19 September, BBC Africa reported on the spread of fighting between Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and Rapid Support Forces (RSF) to the city of Port Sudan. SAF clashed with members of a tribal militia group, the Forces of the Eastern Sudan Parties and Movements Alliance. The clashes erupted when the SAF tried to remove checkpoints set up by the groups in the city. The fighting comes after the Sudanese military government announced that it will build a presidential palace and relocate its foreign ministry to the city of Port Sudan. In response, RSF has announced that they will establish a parallel government in the capital Khartoum. (“First clashes reported in Port Sudan since war began,” BBC, 19 September 2023)
Libya: Hundreds protests against the flood management
On 19 September, hundreds of residents in Libya’s city of Derna protested against the authorities for their failure in dealing with the floods that killed thousands in the city. The protesters criticised the leader of eastern Libya's parliament, Aguila Saleh, and city authorities' mismanagement in disaster warning and evacuation operations. The protesters also set alight the house of Derna’s mayor, Abdulmenam al-Ghaithi. According to the Red Crescent, at least 11,000 people have died and 20,000 others are missing following the torrential rains caused by the storm Daniel and the devastating floods that followed. (“Hundreds protest in flood-hit eastern Libya,” BBC, 19 September 2023)
Ethiopia: Continuing human rights abuses in Tigray, reports the UN
On 18 September, the UN Human Rights Council released a report titled “Report of the International Commission of Human Rights Experts on Ethiopia.” According to the report, war crimes and crimes against humanity are committed by all warring parties in Ethiopia’s Tigray region even after the peace deal signed in November 2022 between the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) and Ethiopian federal forces. Chair of the International Commission of Human Rights Experts on Ethiopia, Mohamed Chande Othman, stated alongside the release of the report: “While the signing of the agreement may have mostly silenced the guns, it has not resolved the conflict in the north of the country, in particular in Tigray, nor has it brought about any comprehensive peace.” The report claimed that TPLF, federal forces, Eritrean forces and their respective regional allied militias are carrying out human rights abuses including sexual violence in the region. All the parties had previously denied similar accusations. (“Crimes against humanity continue in Ethiopia despite truce, say UN experts,” Al Jazeera, 19 September 2023)