Sudanese president backs away from visiting border region with Egypt
June 4, 2011 (KHARTOUM) – The Sudanese foreign minister on Saturday denied reports that president Omer Hassan Al-Bashir intends to visit Halayeb triangle which is a disputed border region with Egypt.
But Sudan’s top diplomat denied that Bashir has any plans to visit Halayeb.
“The president will visit the city of Ouseif which is outside the Halayeb triangle,” Karti told reporters following talks with visiting Egyptian foreign minister Nabil El-Araby.
Karti accused that the Sudanese media of “mishandling” the report and likewise said the Egyptian media responded in an unwise manner.
“Do not pour oil into the fire and we don’t want the will of the two countries to stop at this issue,” Karti said.
The outgoing Egyptian foreign minister on his end said that Halayeb issue does not present any source of tensions between the two countries noting that the area would become a “model for integration”.
“We have emphasized before that Halayeb will be a model for integration between the two countries, and we talk in this context and this region does not create any sort of tension in the relations between the two countries” El-Araby said.
“The Egyptian-Sudanese relations have entered a new stage titled sharing common views and pursuing the common interests of our peoples, and the dialogue between us covered all the political and economic issues,” he added.
It is not clear what prompted the change of heart by Khartoum and whether it was due to pressure by visiting Egyptian foreign minister.
But Karti said that the word “Halayeb” was not even mentioned at all during the meetings with the Egyptian delegation.
The Halayeb triangle that overlooks the Red Sea has been contentious issue between the two countries as early as 1958, shortly after Sudan gained independence from British-Egyptian rule.
The area has been under Cairo’s control since the mid-1990’s after a Sudanese backed attempt on former Egyptian president Mohamed Hosni Mubarak’s life.
Sudan has avoided registering voters inside Halayeb for the elections which took place last year despite earlier assertions that the region was included as a constituency.
But the issue of Halayeb flared up in July of last year when President Al-Bashir made a surprising assertion that “Halayeb is Sudanese and will stay Sudanese” while addressing a rally of his supporters at the coastal town of Port Sudan.
Egypt at the time dismissed the remarks stressing that its Southern borders “are well known at latitude 22°”.
Bashir has rarely brought up the issue publicly in order to avoid angering his Northern neighbor which has been one of his main backers.
(ST)
Marco A. Wek
Sudanese president backs away from visiting border region with Egypt
The cowards Northern SAF are always quick to attack civilians with their gunships and Antinovs while they deadly scared to the limit to go close to Halayeb. Are these what Jalaby, Sam Eto, Osama Bin Saban AKA Saban John called heroes? Why then are they not showing heroism to the people of occupied Halayeb? Is their heroism towards bombing and burning of civilian houses not to mention looting their victims properties ?
And why is the chicken Omar Hassan Al Bashir not going to Halayeb when he was preaching to supporters that Halayeb is Sidanese?
Dinka Dominated SPLA
Sudanese president backs away from visiting border region with Egypt
The wicked northern sudan when to do the samething like what Egypt done to them by taking Halayeb from them by force and they now thinking that doing the samething will occrue in south sudan but the will never take our Abyei land unless we finished,
they can use their nuer missionaries fight us but they will still fail, God is great,
mohammed ali
Sudanese president backs away from visiting border region with Egypt
Maco,
They were brave when they swallowed the bitterness of ambushing 11 of their soldiers clleques, They did it for the sake of peace. The next time when they were attacked from behind killing more than double the first time their courage failed them, and they couldn’t swallow it again!
Those who attack from behind are the real cowards, they betrayed the agreement which they signed and they betrayed their own political and millitary leadeship when they refused to obey orders not to attack the SAF.
It is not bravery when you attack behind your enemy and behind your leadership.
Halyeb is a Sudanese land and if we can get it peacfully and we will do , it will be the best thing.Likewise Abeyei should be setteled peacfully. We donnot want or need any war, we have had enough!
DeltaBravo
Sudanese president backs away from visiting border region with Egypt
TO Mohammed
I don’t think the Eygptian will give it up peacefully or forcefull. Coming to Abyei issue ,it was SAF JIU who fire RPG at police station killing four Southern police officers. It wasn’t SPLA,this was a plane by GOS to take over Abyei they been saying this many times,but they were looking for the way to stop SouthSudanese Independent. We are good people for example during the civilwar we captured so many SAF Soldiers and we kept them a lived as POW untill peace agreement was signed by SPLA and GOS. i believe around 634 of POW were handed over to GOS in 2005. my question is did SAF kept the POW that were capture during the civilwar? We are not again Northern Sudanese people,but we are again the Political system in the North since 1956 after the British left Sudan. We were the victim to any Northern Politician till this day.
mohammed ali
Sudanese president backs away from visiting border region with Egypt
Deltbravo,
What you said was not right according to UNIMIS, US,AU and the GOSS.GOSS had officially apologized for the attack.Building a conspiratory theory around it is not possible. I agree that the SPLA higher commanders were not at all involved. Salva Kiir and James Hoth Mai had given very clear orders to the SPLA division in Abeyei not attack the SAF. The Abeyei local administrator(who is part of Abeyei son’s milliti) disobied the orders and he said it clearly that “he is the man in charge”. Everyone in Sudan, south or North know the story.
Southerners are very good people no doubt about that. During the civil war millions were living with us here in the north in peace and harmoney.Many still do , thousands of students still go to their schools and universities in the north, thousands are coming back to live in peace.
If you say you hate politicians ,that is your opinion and you could be right, nothing wrong with that. Unfortunately the hatred is directed towards the people of the north.The claim that northerners want to Islamize or Arabize did not arise today , it was there even before independence.While the fact remains , no Arab or northeners had invaded the South.No northerner politician had made the borders of Sudan, it was very late annexed to north by the British!
Paul Ongee
Sudanese president backs away from visiting border region with Egypt
The takeover of Abyei by SAF was a premeditated attack. It was something carefully planned before by Omer Hassan Al-Bashir. SPLA cannot lay ambush and attack a SAF’s JIU convoy escorted by UNMIS. The question is why did SAF destroy the strategic bridge linking Abyei and Northern Bahr El Ghazal?
What kind of security arrangements that Khartoum is talking about that would allow the indigenous to come back but not the Messeriya who flocked only to loot, pillage and burn down the town? If Messeriya are the residents of Abyei, how many were killed during the takeover of Abeyi by SAF? What kinds of property of Messeriya looted by Messeriya themselves?
Why is Khartoum shamelessly lying to the whole world that Abyei is now safe for Dinka Ngok to return home while Messeriya people are now given plots to build as quickly as possible? Khartoum needs to know that Dinka Ngok cannot be forced to become citizens of South Kordofan and Messeriya likewise.
Administrative transfer of Abyei in 1905 to the North should never be interpreted as the transfer of land and its people to the North? CAP has clearly outlined the Abyei roadmap to choose whether the residents of Abyei will continue with their present status or go back to South Sudan after holding Abyei referendum which Omer Hassan Al-Bashir intentionally started violating CPA by “authoritatively including” the rights of Messeriya to vote. This is the first violation ever known besides systematic attack on Abyei militariy that started in May 2008 simply because he is the one holding the key of getting Abyei referendum held or not.
Now everything seems to have happened as Khartoum wished but how can Khartoum hold Abyei hostage without holding a referendum or withdrawing from the area? What right does Khartoum have to resettle nomadic Messeriya people in Abyei, disregarding the decision of PCA on the borderline agreed upon in The Hague? Is Khartoum seeing it as a mere confrontation with SPLM, but not with regional and international community whose efforts over the drawn borderline in The Hague was accepted by both Khartoum and Juba?
Despite the track record of signing agreements and dishonoring them, Khartoum must start realizing that the end game is rapidly approaching once and for all. Abyei will have to go back to where it was, but not to where it belongs administratively before signing CPA, disputing ABC report and heading to The Hague. Khartoum cannot violate CPA, ABC and PCA in broad daylight.
Hence, Khartoum got to prepare for the D-Day if it doesn’t want SAF and its military equipment to be owned or withdrawn by the forces of logic. Omer Hassan Al-Bashir, remember that your premeditated attack on Abyei has been studied and conclusion reached to deal with it once and for all. The question remains is how will Messeriya appeal for their grazing rights if denied access to pasture by ROSS because of their long history of alliance with Khartoum to displace indigenous people of Abyei?
The looming long term economic woes of the North is a result of reluctance to implement CPA peacefully, honor The Hague’s decision, demarcate North-South borders as expected within the given timeframe besides conducting popular consultation of the two states of Blue Nile and Southern Kordofan on time. I believe Omer Hassan Al-Bashir will also soon back away from visiting Abyei after July 9, 2011. Hold your breath folks.
Paul Ongee
Khartoum Watch
Paul Ongee
Sudanese president backs away from visiting border region with Egypt
The takeover of Abyei by SAF was a premeditated attack. It was something carefully planned before by Omer Hassan Al-Bashir. SPLA cannot lay ambush and attack a SAF’s JIU convoy escorted by UNMIS. The question is why did SAF destroy the strategic bridge linking Abyei and Northern Bahr El Ghazal?
What kind of security arrangements that Khartoum is talking about that would allow the indigenous to come back but not the Messeriya who flocked only to loot, pillage and burn down the town? If Messeriya are the residents of Abyei, how many were killed during the takeover of Abeyi by SAF? What kinds of property of Messeriya looted by Messeriya themselves?
Why is Khartoum shamelessly lying to the whole world that Abyei is now safe for Dinka Ngok to return home while Messeriya people are now given plots to build as quickly as possible? Khartoum needs to know that Dinka Ngok cannot be forced to become citizens of South Kordofan and Messeriya likewise.
Administrative transfer of Abyei in 1905 to the North should never be interpreted as the transfer of land and its people to the North? CAP has clearly outlined the Abyei roadmap to choose whether the residents of Abyei will continue with their present status or go back to South Sudan after holding Abyei referendum which Omer Hassan Al-Bashir intentionally started violating CPA by “authoritatively including” the rights of Messeriya to vote. This is the first violation ever known besides systematic attack on Abyei militariy that started in May 2008 simply because he is the one holding the key of getting Abyei referendum held or not.
Now everything seems to have happened as Khartoum wished but how can Khartoum hold Abyei hostage without holding a referendum or withdrawing from the area? What right does Khartoum have to resettle nomadic Messeriya people in Abyei, disregarding the decision of PCA on the borderline agreed upon in The Hague? Is Khartoum seeing it as a mere confrontation with SPLM, but not with regional and international community whose efforts over the drawn borderline in The Hague was accepted by both Khartoum and Juba?
Despite the track record of signing agreements and dishonoring them, Khartoum must start realizing that the end game is rapidly approaching once and for all. Abyei will have to go back to where it was, but not to where it belongs administratively before signing CPA, disputing ABC report and heading to The Hague. Khartoum cannot violate CPA, ABC and PCA in broad daylight.
Hence, Khartoum got to prepare for the D-Day if it doesn’t want SAF and its military equipment to be owned or withdrawn by the forces of logic. Omer Hassan Al-Bashir, remember that your premeditated attack on Abyei has been studied and conclusion reached to deal with it once and for all. The question remains is how will Messeriya appeal for their grazing rights if denied access to pasture by ROSS because of their long history of alliance with Khartoum to displace indigenous people of Abyei?
The looming long term economic woes of the North is a result of reluctance to implement CPA peacefully, honor The Hague’s decision, demarcate North-South borders as expected within the given timeframe besides conducting popular consultation of the two states of Blue Nile and Southern Kordofan on time. I believe Omer Hassan Al-Bashir will also soon back away from visiting Abyei after July 9, 2011. Hold your breath folks.
Paul Ongee
Khartoum Watch
mohammed ali
Sudanese president backs away from visiting border region with Egypt
Paul,
The amazing Paul from Khartoum, the country of the ” jalabba opprespers” ; I wonder why you remain to be treated as second class citizent?! Strange enough!
When are you going to stop cheating and lying to yoursef?!
The poor and marginalized people of Dink Ngok are suffering because of the greed and selfishness of people like you , who thrive only in the darkness of war and the lies of propoganda.You want the poor and marginalized dinka to die while you are enjoing the luxury living in Khartoum and it’s hotels with the looted money of the poor are marginalized southerners. How shameful!
Why did the GOSS apologize to the UN officially and openly? Are they conspiring with the NCP? Or are they going to sell Abeyei to the Arabs; as the Abeyei militia sons claim?
The GOSS and the SPLA apologized because they know very well that was done behind their back. The president of the GOSS didn’t say a word for almost 10 days, the Chief commander of the army James Hoth didn’t say aword like wise Machar. Why? because they were ashamed of what Abeyei sons militia did.They disobied the orders of the millitary and political leadership. They betrayed the signature of the SPLA on Kadugli agreement and some peoiple are calling to court marshal them NOW in Juba!
The bridge connecting with Bahr Algazal was destryed by the SPLA to prevent the SAF southward , a common tactic which the SPLA used during the war.
Edward Lino, Deng”Ahmed” Alour, Luka Piong and the rest of the gang are fighting for their postion in the SPLA and the GOSS, they are not fighting for Abeyei people.They are fighting for their domination over the SPLA which had created all the mess in the south since or even before the last elections.The south would have been very safe if they didn’t forge the selection of the SPLA candidates, which Pagan admitted was wrong. Now the whole south , regardless of Abeyei incident, is paying for their greed and love to remain in power!
I wish deeply from my heart that the poor people of Abeyei had something to be looted. They have no tv’s, fridges, computers no money , nothing of real value to be looted by the SAF.
The real problem, which you donnot want to face , is that most of the people are leaving the area, now mainly because of the insecurity, random killing, cattle rustling by rival tribal millitia. They are moving now in Thousands away from the areas of friction and tribal conflicts.Some of them are moving to the north!The SPLA failed miserably to offer them safty and security. They are bussy in Juba with political fighting and loooooooooooting. The declared profits of the Kenyan banks were unprecidented and the undeclared were unbelieveable. Surely, you are getting you fair share , Paul. Otherwise it will be difficult to afford renting a villa in Riyadh, Khartoum, it is at least $ 5000 a month!
The north might face some economic problems, that is true? So , what? Who is not facing economical problems, or you are telling me: allas the south is now paradise!Why should it make you happy if we face economical problem? Does that improve the situation in the South? Or is it simply to quench your hatred towards the Jalabba. Never-the-less we wish the south to be prospourous, peacful and rich. We donnot hate them. If they prospour it will be good for us as well, for sure it won’t hurt us!
Last thing about Abeyei , the Arbiterisation court at the Hague ruled out that the ABC had exceeded their limits and their report was considered NIL & VOID,therfore there was no transfer of land at all. There was transfer of the administration and Abeyei area was part of south Kordufan even before 1905! The rule is that all people of Abeyei have the right to vote in the referundum! By the way did you vote in the South Sudan referundum? Oh, nobody told you that you should be ” permenant” resident of South Sudan to vote!
DeltaBravo
Sudanese president backs away from visiting border region with Egypt
To Mohammed
It wasn’t Abyei sons as you put it. It was well plan by NCP and NISS. according to the report from within Abyei. It was SAF-JIU who fire RPG7 on SPLA Unit first. then SPLA respond firing RPG into SAF Truck as a respond. Instead to be report by Menkerios. Then he side on KHARTUOM side telling UN that SPLA were the first to fire weapon. This incident started on May 15 until May 19. Second Salva Kiir and everybody else in Juba are not aware of it they don’t know what was going on in Abyei during that time. Do you really think SPLA can lay armbush during peace time? i doubt it.
Billiu Puoch
Sudanese president backs away from visiting border region with Egypt
Dear Dinka Dominated SPLM
Nuer will remain Nuer as you know,don’t complicated things when people are not interesting in what you are focusing on behave of Nuer.
Let me tell you Mr.pagan,Nuer will never regret with you Dinka when it come into action believe me junior.
Don’t and don’t even mention the name of Nuer on your fake statement otherwise,we can employ thief to capture another.
Let Mr.Cowboy go and fight with Arabs whom you think is the President Kiir Mayar Diit ( Mr.Cowboy)
DeltaBravo
Sudanese president backs away from visiting border region with Egypt
To Mohammed
Pleae talk about poor people across Sudan not South alone. stop covering up NCP. If you go to Eastern Sudan,Darfur,Nuba Mountain.Blue Nile you will see the suffering of Sudan before you are suporting Northern Politician who don’t care about you and your family.