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Sudan army close to taking control of Presidential Palace from RSF, state TV says

Update Sudan army close to taking control of Presidential Palace from RSF, state TV says
Above, a burnt and heavily damage building in Khartoum North on March 17, 2025. (AFP)
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Updated 20 March 2025

Sudan army close to taking control of Presidential Palace from RSF, state TV says

Sudan army close to taking control of Presidential Palace from RSF, state TV says
  • Marks a significant shift in the two-year-old conflict that threatens to fracture the country
  • The war has led to what the UN calls the world’s largest humanitarian crisis

Sudan’s army is close to taking control of the Presidential Palace in Khartoum from the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces, state TV reported on Thursday, in a significant milestone in a two-year-old conflict that threatens to fracture the country.

The RSF quickly took the palace and most of the capital at the outbreak of war in April 2023, but the Sudanese Armed Forces have in recent months staged a comeback and inched toward the palace along the River Nile.

The RSF, which earlier this year began establishing a parallel government, maintains control of parts of Khartoum and neighboring Omdurman, as well as western Sudan, where it is fighting to take control of the army’s last stronghold in Darfur, Al-Fashir.

The taking of the capital could hasten the army’s full takeover of central Sudan, and harden the east-west territorial division of the country between the two forces.

Both sides have vowed to continue fighting for the remainder of the country, and no efforts at peace talks have materialized.

The war erupted amid a power struggle between Sudan’s army and the RSF ahead of a planned transition to civilian rule.

World’s largest humanitarian crisis

The conflict has led to what the UN calls the world’s largest humanitarian crisis, causing famine in several locations and disease across the country. Both sides have been accused of war crimes, while the RSF has also been charged with genocide. Both forces deny the charges.

The fight for the Presidential Palace has raged over the past several weeks, with the RSF fighting fiercely to maintain control, including via snipers placed around surrounding downtown buildings. Its leader, Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, instructed troops earlier this week not to give up the palace.

Late on Wednesday into Thursday morning, explosions could be heard from airstrikes and drone attacks by the army targeting central Khartoum, witnesses and military sources told Reuters. The army has long maintained the advantage of air power over the RSF, though the paramilitary group has shown evidence of increased drone capabilities recently.

On the Telegram messenger app, the RSF said its forces were making advances toward the Army General Command, also in central Khartoum, and eyewitnesses said the force was attacking from southern Khartoum.

The army’s advance in central Sudan since late last year has been welcomed by many people, who had been displaced by the RSF, which has been accused of widespread looting and arbitrary killings, and of occupying homes and neighborhoods.

The RSF denies the charges and says individual perpetrators will be brought to justice.

Hundreds of thousands of people have returned to their homes in Central Sudan, though late on Wednesday activists in Omdurman warned that some soldiers have engaged in robbery. The military has routinely denied such allegations.


Armenia, Azerbaijan to meet for peace talks in UAE Thursday

Armenia, Azerbaijan to meet for peace talks in UAE Thursday
Updated 56 min 50 sec ago

Armenia, Azerbaijan to meet for peace talks in UAE Thursday

Armenia, Azerbaijan to meet for peace talks in UAE Thursday
  • The announcement came a day after US Secretary of State Marco Rubio expressed hope for a swift peace deal between the Caucasus neighbors

BAKU: The leaders of Armenia and Azerbaijan will meet on Thursday in the United Arab Emirates for peace talks, two days after the US expressed hope for a swift deal.
Baku and Yerevan fought two wars over the disputed Karabakh region, which Azerbaijan recaptured from Armenian forces in a lightning offensive in 2023, prompting the exodus of more than 100,000 ethnic Armenians.
The arch foes agreed on the text of a comprehensive peace deal in March, but Baku has since outlined a host of demands — including amendments to Armenia’s constitution to drop its territorial claims for the Karabakh — before signing the document.
On Wednesday, the Armenian government said Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev will meet the following day in the UAE capital, Abu Dhabi, “within the framework of the peace process between Armenia and Azerbaijan.”
The Azerbaijani presidency issued an identical statement.
The announcement came a day after US Secretary of State Marco Rubio expressed hope for a swift peace deal between the Caucasus neighbors.
Aliyev and Pashinyan last met on the sidelines of the European Political Community summit in Albania in May.


Iraq’s Kurdistan enjoys all-day state electricity

Iraq’s Kurdistan enjoys all-day state electricity
Updated 09 July 2025

Iraq’s Kurdistan enjoys all-day state electricity

Iraq’s Kurdistan enjoys all-day state electricity
  • The region’s electricity minister, Kamal Mohammed, said residents were now enjoying “uninterrupted, cleaner, and more affordable electricity”

Irbil: More than 30 percent of Iraq’s autonomous Kurdistan region now has 24-hour state electricity, authorities said Thursday, with plans to extend full coverage by the end of 2026.
The northern region of Kurdistan has long promoted itself as a haven of relative stability in an otherwise volatile country.
Despite Iraq’s vast oil wealth, the national grid struggles to meet demand, leaving most areas reliant on imported energy and subject to frequent power cuts.
“Today, two million people across the Kurdistan region enjoy 24-hour electricity... that’s 30 percent of the population,” including the cities of Irbil, Duhok and Sulaimaniyah, said regional prime minister Masrour Barzani.
In 2024, the Kurdistan Regional Government launched “Project Runaki” to deliver round-the-clock power in a region where, like much of Iraq, residents often turn to costly and polluting private generators.
The region’s electricity minister, Kamal Mohammed, said residents were now enjoying “uninterrupted, cleaner, and more affordable electricity.”
“Rollout to other areas is expected to be completed by the end of 2026,” he told AFP.
As part of the transition, roughly 30 percent of the 7,000 private generators operating across Kurdistan have already been decommissioned, he said, a move that has contributed to an estimated annual reduction of nearly 400,000 tons of CO2 emissions.
The project also aims to lower household electricity bills, offering a cheaper alternative to the combined cost of grid power and private generator fees.
However, bills will still depend on consumption and are likely to increase during peak summer and winter months.
Mohammed said the project’s success hinges on the introduction of “smart” meters to curb electricity theft, as well as a new tariff system to promote responsible usage.
“More power has been added to the grid to support 24/7 access,” he said.
Kurdistan has doubled its gas production in the past five years, and most of the power supply comes from local gas production, Mohammed said.
Despite Iraq’s abundant oil and gas reserves, years of conflict have devastated its infrastructure.
The country remains heavily reliant on imports, particularly from neighboring Iran, which frequently interrupts supply. It also imports electricity from Jordan and Turkiye, while seeking to boost its own gas output.
“We stand ready to offer our technical support and assistance” to the federal government, Mohammed said.
In Irbil, resident Bishdar Attar, 38, said the biggest change was the absence of noisy and polluting generators.
“The air is now clear,” he said. “We can now use home appliances freely... as needed.”


40 Palestinians killed in Gaza as Netanyahu and Trump meet over a ceasefire

40 Palestinians killed in Gaza as Netanyahu and Trump meet over a ceasefire
Updated 09 July 2025

40 Palestinians killed in Gaza as Netanyahu and Trump meet over a ceasefire

40 Palestinians killed in Gaza as Netanyahu and Trump meet over a ceasefire
  • Israel’s offensive in Gaza has killed more than 57,000 Palestinians, more than half of them women and children
  • Many Palestinians are watching the ceasefire negotiations with desperate for an end to the war

DEIR AL-BALAH: At least 40 Palestinians were killed in Israeli airstrikes in the Gaza Strip, hospital officials said Wednesday, as international mediators raced to complete a ceasefire deal.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had a second meeting in two days with US President Donald Trump at the White House on Tuesday evening. Trump has been pushing for a ceasefire that might lead to an end to the 21-month war in Gaza. Israel and Hamas are considering a new US-backed ceasefire proposal that would pause the war, free Israeli hostages and send much-needed aid into Gaza.
Nasser Hospital in the southern city of Khan Younis said the dead included included 17 women and 10 children. It said one strike killed 10 people from the same family, including three children.
The Israeli military did not comment on specific strikes, but said it had struck more than 100 targets across Gaza over the past day, including militants, booby-trapped structures, weapons storage facilities, missile launchers and tunnels. Israel accuses Hamas of hiding weapons and fighters among civilians.
Struggle to secure food and water
Many Palestinians are watching the ceasefire negotiations with trepidation, desperate for an end to the war.
In the sprawling coastal Muwasi area, where many live in ad-hoc tents after being displaced from their homes, Abeer Al-Najjar said she had struggled during the constant bombardments to secure sufficient food and water for her family. “I pray to God that there would be a pause, and not just a pause where they would lie to us with a month or two, then start doing what they’re doing to us again. We want a full ceasefire.”
Her husband, Ali Al-Najjar, said life has been especially tough in the summer, with no access to drinking water in a crowded tent in the Middle Eastern heat. “We hope this would be the end of our suffering and we can rebuild our country again,” he said, before running through a crowd with two buckets to fill them from a water truck.
People chased the vehicle as it drove away to another location.
Amani Abu-Omar said the water truck comes every four days, not enough for her dehydrated children. She complained of skin rashes in the summer heat. She said she was desperate for a ceasefire but fears she would be let down again. “We had expected ceasefires on many occasions, but it was for nothing,” she said.
The war started after Hamas attacked Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, killing around 1,200 people and taking 251 hostage. Most of the hostages have been released in earlier ceasefires. Israel’s offensive in Gaza has killed more than 57,000 Palestinians, more than half of them women and children, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry.
The UN and other international organizations see its figures as the most reliable statistics on war casualties.
Netanyahu and Trump meet again
Netanyahu told reporters in the Capitol on Tuesday that he and Trump see “eye to eye” on the need to destroy Hamas. He added that the cooperation and coordination between Israel and the US is currently the best it has ever been during Israel’s 77-year-history.
Later this week, Trump’s Mideast envoy, Steve Witkoff, is expected to head to the Qatari capital of Doha to continue indirect negotiations with Hamas on the ceasefire proposal.
Witkoff said late Tuesday that three key areas of disagreement had been resolved, but that one key issue still remained. He did not elaborate.
After the second meeting, Netanyahu said he and Trump also discussed the “great victory” over Iran from Israeli and American strikes during the 12-day war that ended two weeks ago.
“Opportunities have been opened here for expanding the circle of peace, for expanding the Abraham Accords,” said Netanyahu, referring to normalization agreements between Israel and multiple Arab nations that were brokered by Trump in his first term. Washington has been pushing for normalization between Ƶ and Israel.


Five crew rescued from cargo ship attacked in Red Sea: monitors

Five crew rescued from cargo ship attacked in Red Sea: monitors
Updated 26 min 26 sec ago

Five crew rescued from cargo ship attacked in Red Sea: monitors

Five crew rescued from cargo ship attacked in Red Sea: monitors
  • Some of the crew were in lifejackets in the water and at least five people have been rescued so far

DUBAI: Five seafarers have been rescued after a cargo ship was attacked and sunk off in Yemen, maritime monitors said Wednesday, as a search continues for the remaining crew.
The Eternity C, a Liberian-flagged bulk carrier, was badly damaged in the deadly attack in the Red Sea that started on Monday and continued into Tuesday.
Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi militants have not claimed responsibility for the incident, which comes after they boarded and sank another cargo ship on Sunday.
The attacks mark the first wave of Houthi-linked ship strikes since last month’s 12-day war between their main backer, Iran, and Israel.
“Search and rescue operations commenced overnight,” said the British navy’s United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations.
“Five crew members have been rescued and searches continue for those remaining,” it added.
On Tuesday, the European Union force patrolling the Red Sea told AFP that three people were killed and at least two injured — including a Russian electrician who lost a leg — in the attack on the Eternity C.
Twenty-two people were aboard the Greek-operated vessel, all but one from the Philippines, according to Filipino officials.
The US embassy in Yemen has accused the Houthis of staging the attack, with UK-based security firm Ambrey also saying the group was likely to blame.
The Houthis have attacked ships in the vital trade route since the start of the Gaza war, claiming solidarity with the Palestinian cause.
But Sunday’s attack on the Magic Seas was their first since late last year, following a Gaza ceasefire and a heavy US bombing campaign targeting Houthi areas.
The rebels released a propaganda video showing masked, armed men storming the Magic Seas and simultaneous explosions that scuttled the bulk carrier.
Houthi attacks have prompted many freight companies to detour around southern Africa to avoid the Red Sea, which normally carries about 12 percent of global trade.
The US bombing campaign, aimed at stamping out the attacks, ended with a ceasefire in early May. However, the rebels told AFP they would continue to target “Israeli ships.”
On Monday, they said they hit the Magic Seas because the company that owns it had done business with Israel and used its ports.
In a statement on Tuesday, the US embassy in Yemen blamed the Houthis for the Eternity C attack, calling it “the most violent” yet and accusing them “undermining freedom of navigation in the Red Sea.”
Meanwhile Israel, stung by regular Houthi missile attacks, has carried out several strikes on Yemen, including a wave of air raids on Sunday.


Jailed PKK leader Ocalan says armed struggle with Turkiye over

Jailed PKK leader Ocalan says armed struggle with Turkiye over
Updated 09 July 2025

Jailed PKK leader Ocalan says armed struggle with Turkiye over

Jailed PKK leader Ocalan says armed struggle with Turkiye over
  • Ocalan urged Turkiye’s parliament to set up a commission to oversee disarmament and manage a broader peace process

Abdullah Ocalan, the jailed leader of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), appeared in a rare online video on Wednesday to say the group’s armed struggle against Turkiye has ended, and he called for a full shift to democratic politics.

In the recording, dated June and released by Firat News Agency, which is close to the PKK, Ocalan urged Turkiye’s parliament to set up a commission to oversee disarmament and manage a broader peace process.

The PKK, which has waged an insurgency against the Turkish state for 40 years and is labelled a terrorist organization by Turkiye, the United States and the EU, decided in May to disband after an initial written appeal from Ocalan in February.

“The phase of armed struggle has ended. This is not a loss, but a historic gain,” he said in the video, the first time since he was jailed in 1999 that either footage of him or a recording of his voice has been released.

“The armed struggle stage must now be voluntarily replaced by a phase of democratic politics and law.”

Ocalan, seated in a beige polo shirt with a glass of water on the table in front of him, appeared to read from a transcript in the seven-minute video. He was surrounded by six other jailed PKK members all looking straight at the camera.

He said the PKK had ended its separatist agenda.

“The main objective has been achieved – existence has been acknowledged,” he said. “What remains would be excessive repetition and a dead end.”

Ocalan added that Turkiye’s pro-Kurdish DEM Party, the third largest in parliament in Ankara, should work alongside other political parties.