Sudan may be removed from the US terrorism list

WASHINGTON, Feb 04, 2004 (Sudan Tribune) — “Sudan may be removed from the terrorism list” US secretary of State Collin Powell said in an interview to the Washington Post published yesterday.

Sudan openly harbored al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden and may radical islamist groups in the 1990s.

Powell said he hopes negotiations later this month to end Sudan’s civil war can produce agreement on the disputed oil-rich area of Abyei, the last major hurdle. A formal peace accord would be the key in getting Sudan off the list, U.S. officials say.

On the other hand, DEBKA-Net-Weekly newsletter indicated that president Bush would pay a visit to Sudan and Libya.

The president is programming his trips as dramatic high points of the seismic military and political changes his administration has set in motion in the Middle East and key regions of northern and eastern Africa, DEBKA added.

This trip may take place at the end of summer or early fall, the newsletter indicated.

Sudan become an important issue for Bush administration under the pressure of U.S. coalition of Christian groups and African-American legislators

The Clinton administration imposed tough economic sanctions against Sudan when it listed Khartoum as a state sponsor of terrorism for the first time in 1993. In 1995, it accused Khartoum of involvement in the attempted assassination of Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak in Addis Ababa and cosponsored a UN resolution that imposed additional diplomatic sanctions.