A member of the United Nations Commission on Human Rights in South Sudan, Barney Afako, today commenced a five-day visit to the African Union in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. The Commission’s visit follows President Salva Kiir’s assent to two laws in the past week, marking a significant milestone towards the establishment of a Commission for Truth, Reconciliation and Healing, and the Reparation Authority for addressing legacies of violations and the needs of victims and survivors. In September 2024, South Sudan’s leaders extended for another two years the 2018 Revitalized Agreement on the Resolution of the Conflict in the Republic of South Sudan, raising concerns about their commitment to completing the political transition. The African Union and IGAD are among the main guarantors of the Revitalized Agreement. (Radio Tamazuj)
Opposition Leader Wins Somaliland Presidential Contest
The Somaliland electoral commission announced Tuesday that opposition leader Abdirahman Mohamed Abdullahi “Irro” defeated incumbent Muse Bihi Abdi for the presidency of the breakaway region located on the Horn of Africa. Independent observers described the election as peaceful. Irro, candidate for the Waddani (National) party captured 63.92% of the vote, compared with Bihi’s 34.81%. A third candidate, Faysal Ali Warabe, received 0.74% of the votes. The election was originally scheduled to take place in 2022 but was delayed due to political differences. Bihi, who defeated Irro in the last election in 2017, promised during the campaign that he would respect the results of the election. (VOA)
Acute Food Insecurity to Hit Most People in South Sudan Next Year, Says UN
Almost 60 percent of South Sudan’s population will be acutely food insecure next year, with more than two million children at risk of malnutrition, warns data from a United Nations-backed review. The latest Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) review published on Monday estimated that starting in April, 57 percent of the population would be suffering from acute food insecurity, which the UN defines as when a “person’s inability to consume adequate food puts their lives or livelihoods in immediate danger”. Almost 7.7 million people will be classed as acutely food insecure, according to the IPC, an increase from 7.1 million people the previous lean season. (Al Jazeera)
Sudanese Who Escaped from War-torn Tuti Island Speak of Hunger, Disease
[Dozens of people] escaped Sudan’s Tuti island earlier this year amid a siege by the Rapid Support Forces, finding refuge at a shelter after surviving for months on scant food and the risk of disease. The island in the middle of the Nile serves as a microcosm for the devastation unleashed by a war that began in April 2023…Activists report that the RSF charged people large sums to evacuate them…The island is one of 14 places across Sudan at risk of famine, according to experts. Dengue fever has ravaged Tuti, a close-knit farming community…Charity kitchens have been forced to close in Tuti and elsewhere in the capital Khartoum due to lack of funding and supplies, and high prices. (Reuters)
