Middle East Experience

Sudanese security forces shot dead two people Saturday during mass protests against the country’s recent military coup, a doctors’ union said. The shootings came despite repeated appeals by the West to Sudan’s new military rulers to show restraint and allow peaceful protests.Thousands of Sudanese have taken to the streets, where whistles and drums accompany chants of “revolution, revolution” in protest of this week’s coup, which is threatening to derail the country’s fitful transition to democracy.For all the latest headlines follow our Google News channel online or via the app.Pro-democracy groups had called for protests across the country to press demands for re-instating a deposed transitional government and releasing senior political figures from detention.The US and the United Nations had warned Sudan’s strongman, Gen. Abdel-Fattah Burhan, that they view the military’s treatment of the protesters as a test, and called for restraint.Burhan has claimed that the transition to democracy would continue despite the military takeover, saying he would install a new technocrat government soon. The pro-democracy movement in Sudan fears the military has no intention of easing its grip, and will appoint politicians it can control.Saturday’s protests were likely to increase pressure on the generals who face mounting condemnations from the US and other Western countries to restore a civilian-led government.Crowds began to gather Saturday afternoon in the capital of Khartoum and its twin city Omdurman, Marchers chanted “Give it up, Burhan” and “revolution, revolution.” Some held up banners reading, “Going backward is impossible.”The demonstrations were called by the Sudanese Professionals’ Association and the so-called Resistance Committees. Both were at the forefront of an uprising that toppled longtime autocrat Omar al-Bashir and his Islamist government in 2019.They demand the dismantling of the now-ruling military council, led by Burhan, and the handover of the government to civilians. They also seek the dismantling paramilitary groups and restructuring the military, intelligence and security agencies. They want officers loyal to al-Bashir to be removed.The Sudan Doctors Committee, a professional union, said security forces shot dead two people in Omdurman. It said one was shot in his head, and the other in his stomach.The committee, which is part of the Sudanese Professionals’ Association, said security forces used live ammunition against protesters in Omdurman and other places in the capital. It said unspecified number of protesters were also wounded.Elsewhere, security forces fired tear gas at protesters Saturday as they attempted to cross the Manshia Bridge over the Nile River to reach Khartoum’s downtown, said Mohammed Yousef al-Mustafa, a spokesman for the professionals’ association.“No power-sharing mediation with the military council again,” he said. “They (the generals) have failed the transition and instated a coup.”Al-Mustafa spoke with The Associated Press over the phone while he took part in the protest in Khartoum’s Manshia neighborhood.Before the start of the protests, security forces had blocked major roads and bridges linking Khartoum’s neighborhoods. Security was tight downtown and outside the military’s headquarters, the site of a major sit-in camp in the 2019 uprisingSince the military takeover, there have been daily street protests. With Saturday’s fatal shooting, the overall number of people killed by the security forces since the coup rose to 11, according to the Sudan Doctors’ Committee and activists. At least 170 others have been injured, according to the UNThere were fears that security forces may again resort to violence to disperse protesters. Since Monday’s coup troops have fired live ammunition, rubber bullets and tear gas at anti-coup demonstrators. They also beat protesters with sticks and whips.Representatives of the UN and the US have urged the military to show restraint.Late Friday, the UN special envoy for Sudan, Volker Perthes, met with Gen. Mohammed Hamdan Dagalo, a coup leader seen as close to Burhan. Dagalo commands the feared Rapid Support Forces, a paramilitary unit that controls the streets of the capital of Khartoum and played a major role in the coup. Perthes said in a message posted on Twitter that he “stressed the need for calm, allowing peaceful protest and avoiding any confrontation” in his talks with Dagalo.Clément Nyaletsossi Voule, the UN special rapporteur on the right to freedom of peaceful assembly and association, also urged security forces to avoid violence against protesters. “They will be held individually accountable for any excessive use of force against protesters. We are monitoring,” he warned.Burhan has claimed that the takeover was necessary to prevent a civil war, citing what he said were growing divisions among political groups. However, the takeover came less than a month before he was to have handed the leadership of the Sovereign Council, the main decision-making body in Sudan, to a civilian. Such a step would have lessened the military’s grip on the country. The council had both civilian and military members.As part of the coup, Burhan dismissed the council and the transitional government, led by Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok, that was in charge of day-to-day affairs. He also imposed a state of emergency across the country and military authorities largely cut off internet and mobile phone services. Internet access remained largely disrupted Saturday, according to internet-access advocacy group NetBlocks.Burhan installed himself as head of a military council that will rule Sudan until elections in July 2023. In an interview with Russia’s state-owned Sputnik news agency published Friday, Burhan said he would soon name a new premier who will form a Cabinet that is to share leadership of the country with the armed forces.“We have a patriotic duty to lead the people and help them in the transition period until elections are held,” Burhan said in the interview. He said that as long as expected protests are peaceful, “security forces will not intervene.”However, observers said it’s doubtful the military will allow a full transition to civilian rule, if only to block civilian oversight of the military’s large financial holdings.Read more:Thousands stage nationwide protests against Sudan coupAnti-coup protests begin in Sudan: WitnessesUN, US to Sudan military: Show restraint during protests
Source: Al Arabiya
Full Article: Sudanese security forces kill two during anti-coup protests: Medics

Algeria’s women’s football team is set to leave Sudan on Saturday evening, five days after a coup in the country..
Source: Albawaba
Full Article: Algeria women set to leave Sudan after coup

The United Arab Emirates has announced the withdrawal of its ambassador from Lebanon and advised its citizens not to travel to the country, according to Al Arabiya’s correspondent.The UAE said it is also banning its citizens from traveling to Lebanon, following recent comments made by Lebanese Information Minister George Kordahi.For the latest headlines, follow our Google News channel online or via the app.“The UAE announces the withdrawal of its diplomats from Lebanon in solidarity with the sisterly Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, in light of the unacceptable approach of some Lebanese officials towards the Kingdom, and it has decided to prevent its citizens from traveling to the Republic of Lebanon,” a statement released by state-run WAM news agency read.Lebanese President Michel Aoun said on Saturday he wanted the best relations with Saudi Arabia after the kingdom summoned its ambassador, expelled Beirut’s envoy and banned Lebanese imports.Aoun’s statement in a tweet followed talks by a ministerial crisis management group aimed at easing a diplomatic rift that stemmed partly from comments by a Lebanese minister criticizing the Arab Coalition military intervention in Yemen.The row over critical comments made by Lebanese Information Minister Kordahi about the Arab Coalition military intervention in Yemen threw the government into a new crisis amid calls for Kordahi’s resignation.- With agenciesRead more:Lebanese president Aoun says he wants best relations with SaudisLebanon ministers hold crisis meeting over dispute with Saudi ArabiaGroup of former Lebanese PMs calls on Kordahi to resignArab League expresses concern over worsening Lebanese-Gulf relations: Statement
Source: Al Arabiya
Full Article: UAE recalls ambassador from Lebanon, advises citizens not to travel to Beirut

The meeting with the leaders of Germany, France, and Britain — known as the E3 — comes at a pivotal time, as Iran continues to enrich uranium to near-weapons-grade levels..
Source: Albawaba
Full Article: Biden, Trio Of European Allies Discuss Iran Nuclear Program

A new mechina (IDF pre-draft program), a branch of the Bnei David mechina in Eli, was founded to help Ethiopian Israelis contend with an 'identity crisis.'
Source: Jerusalem Post
Full Article: New pre-IDF mechina program for Ethiopian Israelis founded

Palestinian Authority General Intelligence Service head Maged Faraj to Dubai has sparked speculation that the UAE and PA may be mending fences.
Source: Jerusalem Post
Full Article: Are the PA and UAE on the path to reconciliation?

“An oral COVID-19 vaccine would eliminate barriers to rapid, wide-scale distribution, enabling people to administer the vaccine themselves."
Source: Jerusalem Post
Full Article: Israel's oral COVID vaccine gets greenlight for trial in South Africa

The US Air Force bomber, commonly called the "bone," was headed towards the Persian Gulf.
Source: Jerusalem Post
Full Article: US Air Force bomber escorted by IAF F-15s in Israel flyover

The Iran-based group responsible for previous attacks on Israeli vehicle insurance company Shirbit demanded bitcoins as ransom and shut down the servers when Cyberserve failed to deliver payment.
Source: Jerusalem Post
Full Article: Iranian hackers may have breached Israeli LGBT app, accessed sensitive data

Lebanese Maronite Patriarch Bechara Boutros al-Rai called on the authorities on Sunday to take a “decisive step” to defuse a crisis with Gulf Arab states over critical comments made by Information Minister George Kordahi about the Arab Coalition in Yemen.For all the latest headlines follow our Google News channel online or via the app.Rai, who made the plea to President Michel Aoun and Prime Minister Najib Mikati in his Sunday sermon, did not suggest any specific measure.Kordahi says he made his comments about the war in Yemen before becoming a minister and so far resisted calls to resign.Saudi Arabia expelled Lebanon’s envoy and banned all Lebanese imports on Friday, and Bahrain and Kuwait followed suit, giving the top Lebanese diplomats 48 hours to exit. The United Arab Emirates later said it would withdraw all its diplomats and banned its citizens from travelling to Lebanon.Read more:Saudi FM: No crisis with Lebanon, but rather crisis in Lebanon due to Iran's proxiesOman expresses regret over Saudi-Lebanese diplomatic riftSaudi FM says Kingdom has ‘has no opinion on whether Lebanon govt stays or resigns’
Source: Al Arabiya
Full Article: Lebanon’s Maronite Christian Patriarch urges Aoun, Mikati to defuse crisis with Gulf