Why did the Suez Canal Administration impose additional fees on ships?

The former Prime Minister of Sudan and Head of the Taqaddum Coordination, Abdullah Hamdok, said, “Cairo may host a possible meeting between the President of the Sovereignty Council, Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, and the Commander of the Rapid Support Forces, Mohamed Hamdan Daglo (Hemedti).”

Hamdok added, according to what the Arab World News Agency reported on Monday evening, citing an interview with Al-Sudani newspaper, that he had discussed with the Egyptian leadership the possibility of urging Al-Burhan and Hemedti to meet in Cairo in order to stop the war, indicating that the officials The Egyptians “welcomed the matter because the stability of Sudan is the stability of Egypt, and the collapse of Sudan is a major security disaster for Egypt,” as he put it. Amid questions about Egypt entering into a mediation line to stop the Sudanese war.

On the other hand, an informed Egyptian source told Asharq Al-Awsat (Tuesday) that talk about Egypt hosting Hemedti and Al-Burhan “is not currently on the table.” The source, who preferred to remain anonymous, said that Egypt “is making every effort to end the crisis in Sudan, and that taking any steps in this regard is subject to the constants of the Egyptian role and the strategic and historical relations with the brothers in Sudan.”

At the beginning of this year, Hamdok had previously sent an invitation to communicate with both the Sudanese army leadership and the Rapid Support Forces, before meeting last January in the Ethiopian capital, Hemeti, while Al-Burhan has not met yet.

On Tuesday, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi made a phone call with the President of the Sudanese Transitional Sovereignty Council, Lieutenant General Abdel Fattah Al-Burhan, where the two sides exchanged congratulations on the occasion of the month of Ramadan, according to a statement by the Egyptian presidency, without indicating any additional details regarding the call.

Taqaddam’s visit to Cairo

On Sunday, the delegation of the Coordination of Civil Democratic Forces “Taqaddum”, headed by Hamdok, concluded its two-day visit to Cairo, which was Hamdok’s first to Egypt since the outbreak of war in Sudan last April. The visit included meetings with official leaders, thinkers and officials. The Arab League, and the components of Sudanese society in Egypt, as part of the efforts made by “Taqadum” to stop the devastating war in Sudan, according to a statement the coordination published on its official Facebook page.

According to the statement, the “Taqaddam” delegation discussed with the Egyptian leadership the developments of the ongoing war in Sudan, and the dangers of its continuation to the country and its regional and international surroundings. The Egyptian leadership confirmed its close monitoring of developments in the Sudanese crisis, and its keenness to make all efforts to help reach a peaceful, negotiated solution, from While working to bring viewpoints closer between the people of Sudan in order to achieve sustainable peace.

The visit of the “Taqaddum” delegation to Cairo came after it included several African countries to resolve the Sudanese crisis and stop the war.

restore stability

For his part, the Secretary-General of the Egyptian Council for Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Ali Al-Hafni, pointed out the Egyptian keenness to communicate with the various Sudanese parties, pointing out that it is in Egypt’s interest to restore calm and stability inside Sudan, and that Cairo “does not hesitate to make any effort to facilitate… Sudanese consensus.

Regarding Hamdok’s statements regarding the possibility of Cairo hosting a meeting between the commander of the Sudanese army and the commander of the Rapid Support Forces, Al-Hafni indicated in his interview with Asharq Al-Awsat that Cairo “has all the necessary capabilities to play this role if it sees that it is useful in achieving consensus between the Sudanese.” », stressing that Egypt «does not interfere in Sudanese affairs, nor impose solutions on its people, but rather suffices with facilitating Sudanese-Sudanese dialogue and discussion.»

Al-Hafni, who served as the former Egyptian Assistant Foreign Minister for African Affairs, added that Cairo “will not hesitate to host a meeting between Al-Burhan and Hemedti if it sees that it is useful in stopping the war, and in accordance with the outcomes of the summit of Sudan’s neighboring countries,” indicating that the Egyptian authorities are communicating with them. Various Sudanese parties. He also noted that Lieutenant General Al-Burhan visited Egypt twice since the outbreak of the crisis, in addition to Egypt’s hosting of many politicians and symbols of the Sudanese civil movement on its territory.

Last July, Egypt hosted a summit of Sudan’s neighboring countries with the participation of seven African countries: Egypt, Libya, Chad, Central Africa, South Sudan, Eritrea, and Ethiopia. In July last year, Cairo also hosted meetings of the Central Council of the Forces of Freedom and Change coalition, which aimed to develop a political framework on the part of the civil forces to stop the Sudanese war and discuss issues of democratic transition in the country.

Difficulties of meeting

In turn, the Deputy Director of the Al-Ahram Center for Political and Strategic Studies, Dr. Ayman Al-Sayed Abdel-Wahab, an expert in African affairs, did not rule out that Egypt would play mediating roles in the Sudanese crisis, noting the “historical and special” relations between Egypt and Sudan, in addition to Egypt’s lack of involvement in any of the tools The conflict is between the two sides of the conflict in Sudan, which provides Cairo with a good space for negotiation within the framework of its ruling vision of preserving the entity of the Sudanese state, and facilitating the sitting of all parties at the dialogue table.

Abdel Wahab explained to Asharq Al-Awsat that the regional context could pave the way for a dialogue of this kind between Al-Burhan and Hemedti under Egyptian sponsorship “if there are serious guarantees for its success,” noting that “there are many difficulties surrounding holding a meeting between the two sides of the Sudanese conflict.”

He added that Hamdok’s visit to Cairo could be considered “a kind of prelude,” especially in light of Al-Burhan’s insistence on not holding a dialogue outside Sudanese territory to block the way for any foreign interference, which is consistent with the Egyptian vision calling for “the dialogue to be Sudanese without the influence of regional agendas.” Or international on it,” and then “Cairo can provide the appropriate atmosphere for holding this meeting away from regional tensions, which often lead to complicating matters rather than resolving them.”

Since April 15, armed clashes have continued between the Sudanese army forces and the Rapid Support Forces in many areas of Sudan, leading to the death of more than 12,000 people, in addition to causing the largest child displacement crisis in the world, according to what the United Nations announced, End of last year.