Artillery fire was reported in the Sudanese capital Khartoum on Wednesday as army chief Gen Abdel Fattah Al Burhan vowed to press on with the army's offensive against the rival Rapid Support Forces paramilitary.
Gen Al Burhan’s army and allied volunteers on Tuesday regained control of the state radio and television complex in Omdurman, a city across the Nile from Khartoum that is part of the capital’s greater area.
Its recapture by the army is a symbolic victory that could possibly signal a shift in the direction of the war, which broke out in April.
The complex has been captured by the RSF, alongside other key installations including the capital's only international airport and the presidential palace, in the early days of the war.
Hours after the army announced the recapture of the complex, Gen Al Burhan arrived in Omdurman amid jubilant scenes by troops and volunteers. The army posted online photos of the general having iftar, the meal Muslims eat to break their dawn-to-dusk fast during the month of Ramadan, which began on Monday.
The photos showed the general squatting on the ground on a street while surrounded by senior army officers and civilians.
“Our message to the Rapid Support Forces is that the armed forces and other organised forces will come after you everywhere until complete victory is ours,” an army statement quoted Gen Al Burhan as saying while addressing troops in Omdurman.
“We will continue to besiege the mutinous enemy everywhere,” said the general in camouflage combat fatigues and a matching jungle hat.
Mahmoud Nassar, a commander of a contingent of volunteers that took part in Tuesday's battle, said dozens of vehicles used by the RSF have been destroyed or captured by army troops backed by drones.
He said dozens of RSF fighters were also killed in the battle and subsequent operations in adjacent areas. The army has not released casualty figures among troops or the RSF.
The capture of the radio and TV complex and nearby districts of Omdurman was warmly greeted by residents of the historic city, where RSF fighters are blamed for widespread looting and commandeering private homes to use as military bases.
“I felt so much pride when I saw our army troops back on the streets,” said local resident Intisar Abdullah, a civil servant. “I tell the army ‘Don’t stop until you liberate every inch of our country from those mercenaries’,” she said.
Omdurman was mostly quiet on Wednesday, but residents of the capital reported intense shelling at the capital’s sports city, a sprawling complex in Khartoum captured by the RSF in the war’s early days.
The war in Sudan broke out on April 15 last year when weeks of tension between the army and the RSF over details of the country’s democratic transition boiled over into violence.
Eleven months later, the fighting has displaced about eight million people, killed tens of thousands and created a major humanitarian crisis.
The UN says 18 million of Sudan's 48 million people are acutely food insecure, five million of whom have reached the last level before famine. The UN World Food Program says less than five per cent of Sudanese can afford a full meal.
Unless sufficient aid is delivered soon to Sudan, it has warned, “the largest famine crisis in the world” will emerge in the vast Afro-Arab nation.
According to the international aid group Save the Children, about 230,000 children and new mothers in Sudan are “likely to die from hunger” without urgent intervention.
However, the army this week rejected a call for a Ramadan truce to allow the safe delivery of humanitarian assistance to Sudanese in need. The call came in a UN Security Council resolution adopted on Friday.
Its rejection of the call is widely believed to be rooted in its fear that the RSF would use the cessation of hostilities to regroup or to advantageously repost its fighters. There have also been instances since the war broke out when RSF fighters have looted UN food storage facilities or aid convoys.
Several ceasefires mediated by Saudi Arabia and the US last year proved short lived or were completely ignored, with each side blaming the other for their breach.
Al Shafie Ahmed reported from Kampala, Uganda
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Results
- Brock Lesnar retained the WWE Universal title against Roman Reigns
- Braun Strowman and Nicolas won the Raw Tag Team titles against Sheamus and Cesaro
- AJ Styles retained the WWE World Heavyweight title against Shinsuke Nakamura
- Nia Jax won the Raw Women’s title against Alexa Bliss
- Daniel Bryan and Shane McMahon beat Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn
- The Undertaker beat John Cena
- The Bludgeon Brothers won the SmackDown Tag Team titles against the Usos and New Day
- Ronda Rousey and Kurt Angle beat Triple H and Stephanie McMahon
- Jinder Mahal won the United States title against Randy Orton, Rusev and Bobby Roode
- Charlotte retained the SmackDown Women’s title against Asuka
- Seth Rollins won the Intercontinental title against The Miz and Finn Balor
- Naomi won the first WrestleMania Women’s Battle Royal
- Cedric Alexander won the vacant Cruiserweight title against Mustafa Ali
- Matt Hardy won the Andre the Giant Battle Royal
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Four reasons global stock markets are falling right now
There are many factors worrying investors right now and triggering a rush out of stock markets. Here are four of the biggest:
1. Rising US interest rates
The US Federal Reserve has increased interest rates three times this year in a bid to prevent its buoyant economy from overheating. They now stand at between 2 and 2.25 per cent and markets are pencilling in three more rises next year.
Kim Catechis, manager of the Legg Mason Martin Currie Global Emerging Markets Fund, says US inflation is rising and the Fed will continue to raise rates in 2019. “With inflationary pressures growing, an increasing number of corporates are guiding profitability expectations downwards for 2018 and 2019, citing the negative impact of rising costs.”
At the same time as rates are rising, central bankers in the US and Europe have been ending quantitative easing, bringing the era of cheap money to an end.
2. Stronger dollar
High US rates have driven up the value of the dollar and bond yields, and this is putting pressure on emerging market countries that took advantage of low interest rates to run up trillions in dollar-denominated debt. They have also suffered capital outflows as international investors have switched to the US, driving markets lower. Omar Negyal, portfolio manager of the JP Morgan Global Emerging Markets Income Trust, says this looks like a buying opportunity. “Despite short-term volatility we remain positive about long-term prospects and profitability for emerging markets.”
3. Global trade war
Ritu Vohora, investment director at fund manager M&G, says markets fear that US President Donald Trump’s spat with China will escalate into a full-blown global trade war, with both sides suffering. “The US economy is robust enough to absorb higher input costs now, but this may not be the case as tariffs escalate. However, with a host of factors hitting investor sentiment, this is becoming a stock picker’s market.”
4. Eurozone uncertainty
Europe faces two challenges right now in the shape of Brexit and the new populist government in eurozone member Italy.
Chris Beauchamp, chief market analyst at IG, which has offices in Dubai, says the stand-off between between Rome and Brussels threatens to become much more serious. "As with Brexit, neither side appears willing to step back from the edge, threatening more trouble down the line.”
The European economy may also be slowing, Mr Beauchamp warns. “A four-year low in eurozone manufacturing confidence highlights the fact that producers see a bumpy road ahead, with US-EU trade talks remaining a major question-mark for exporters.”
AndhaDhun
Director: Sriram Raghavan
Producer: Matchbox Pictures, Viacom18
Cast: Ayushmann Khurrana, Tabu, Radhika Apte, Anil Dhawan
Rating: 3.5/5
Scoreline:
Everton 4
Richarlison 13'), Sigurdsson 28', Digne 56', Walcott 64'
Manchester United 0
Man of the match: Gylfi Sigurdsson (Everton)
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Heavily-sugared soft drinks slip through the tax net
Some popular drinks with high levels of sugar and caffeine have slipped through the fizz drink tax loophole, as they are not carbonated or classed as an energy drink.
Arizona Iced Tea with lemon is one of those beverages, with one 240 millilitre serving offering up 23 grams of sugar - about six teaspoons.
A 680ml can of Arizona Iced Tea costs just Dh6.
Most sports drinks sold in supermarkets were found to contain, on average, five teaspoons of sugar in a 500ml bottle.
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Zayed Sustainability Prize
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Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week
The five pillars of Islam
The biog
Hobby: Playing piano and drawing patterns
Best book: Awaken the Giant Within by Tony Robbins
Food of choice: Sushi
Favourite colour: Orange
The five pillars of Islam
1. Fasting
2. Prayer
3. Hajj
4. Shahada
5. Zakat
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
The years Ramadan fell in May
The five pillars of Islam
How the bonus system works
The two riders are among several riders in the UAE to receive the top payment of £10,000 under the Thank You Fund of £16 million (Dh80m), which was announced in conjunction with Deliveroo's £8 billion (Dh40bn) stock market listing earlier this year.
The £10,000 (Dh50,000) payment is made to those riders who have completed the highest number of orders in each market.
There are also riders who will receive payments of £1,000 (Dh5,000) and £500 (Dh2,500).
All riders who have worked with Deliveroo for at least one year and completed 2,000 orders will receive £200 (Dh1,000), the company said when it announced the scheme.
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