Pan-African News Wire

Wednesday, August 26, 2026

Gary is Majority Black and Out of Power

A city built on the steel industry which became a pioneer in African American political representation has faced massive population loss and now a power outage which lasted more than two weeks

By Abayomi Azikiwe

Editor, Pan-African News Wire

Wednesday August 26, 2026

Political Review

Gary, Indiana has been a focal point for discussion among the African American people across the United States due to a storm which caused a power outage lasting more than two weeks.

With a 76% African American population many believe that institutional racism could have played a part in the delay in restoring electricity in the municipality.

Gary and northwest Indiana have also been the location for data centers whose operations have had a negative impact on Gary and nearby communities along with other regions throughout the United States. The outage, which began on August 11, plunged Gary into complete darkness.

People suffered from the spoilage of food while the darkness and extreme heat threatened the well-being of the 67,000 residents of the city. The Northern Indiana Public Service Company (NIPSCO), the monopoly power firm, has come under severe criticism for the delay in restoring electricity.

Gary has a high rate of impoverishment involving at least one-third of the city’s population. This can be attributed to deindustrialization of the city after the closure of steel mills over the last four decades.

Gary Mayor Eddie Melton in an interview on August 24 said that the delay in restoring power was “unacceptable.” The mayor later made a direct appeal to the White House for assistance in resolving the crisis.

In social media posts emanating from Gary, people complained about the delay in power restoration. Many also decried the fact that the situation in Gary was not receiving national press coverage. The information about what was happening inside the city was circulated by residents and their families. Others who formerly lived in Gary and still had relatives there played a role in publicizing the situation in the northwest Indiana city.

In a transcription of the statement Melton delivered via livestream, emphasized that:

“Twelve days is too long for parents to worry about their children, and for businesses to lose revenue, and for families to wonder when the relief is finally going to come. Today, I want the people of Gary to know this. I want you to know that I share their frustration.” (https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/aug/24/gary-indiana-mayor-power-outages-storm)

As power was being slowly restored in Gary and neighboring communities, humanitarian efforts were being carried out to supply food and water to the people. Those who had automobiles and money to travel left the city to stay with relatives and friends until the power was turned back on. Nonetheless, many people did not have the capability to travel to other cities and were forced to suffer until the situation changed.

The August 11 storm was characterized by 99 mph winds which brought down power lines and prompted flooding. Due to the fact that NIPSCO did not conduct ongoing work to remove trees surrounding power lines, the damage was quite extensive and posed challenges to repair.

In a report published by the Indianapolis Recorder, it attempts to analyze what could have caused such extensive damage:

“The power company has said Gary experienced the most widespread outage of any community in its Indiana territory. The utility is targeting 11:59 p.m. Aug. 25 for full restoration in Gary, making the city one of the last Northwest Indiana communities expected to have power fully restored. But windspeed alone doesn’t explain how the storm — classified as a derecho — could leave so much of a city without electricity for nearly two weeks. Atmospheric and environmental researchers say the devastation resulted from a punishing combination: unusually broad and sustained straight-line winds sweeping across rain-saturated soil, uprooting trees that then crashed into an electrical system heavily dependent on overhead power lines. The scale of the damage also raises a longer-term question: What investments can make electrical systems more resilient to severe storms?” (https://indianapolisrecorder.com/gary-power-outage-why-lasting/)

Obviously, preparations for natural disasters could avoid such situations as occurred in Gary and other northwest Indiana cities. Yet, in the US there is very limited investment in avoiding disasters as well as relief from such occurrences.

Funding from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is far less than what is required amid the worsening conditions brought on by climate change. In addition, the Trump administration has also slashed funding for the National Weather Service (NWS) and National Public Radio (NPR) which broadcast reports in areas which are lacking in local coverage.

Moreover, the ideological orientation of the MAGA Republicans who control the White House, Congress and the Supreme Court is one of climate change denialists. At present the government is mainly concerned about maximizing profits for the multinational corporations and the initiation of wars in Asia, Africa and Latin America.

Gary Has Been in Decline for Decades

As an industrial hub in northwest Indiana, Gary was a center for the Great Migration of African Americans from the rural South to the North. Black people poured into the city during the period between World War I until the post-World War II era.

The New York Times reported on the population loss and de-industrialization of Gary in an extensive article in February 2024. This entry in the Times said:

“Gary, Ind., was once a symbol of American innovation. The home of U.S. Steel’s largest mill, Gary churned out the product that built America’s bridges, tunnels and skyscrapers. The city reaped the rewards, with a prosperous downtown and vibrant neighborhoods. Gary’s smokestacks are still prominent along Lake Michigan’s sandy shore, starkly juxtaposed between the eroding dunes and Chicago’s towering silhouette to the northwest. But now they represent a city looking for a fresh start. More than 10,000 buildings sit abandoned and the population of 180,000 in the 1960s has dropped by more than half. Poverty, crime and an ignoble moniker — ‘Scary Gary’ — deter private investors and prospective homeowners.” (https://www.nytimes.com/2024/02/03/business/economy/gary-indiana-economy.html)

During the 1960s and early 1970s, Gary represented hope for the African American people in their quest for political power which emerged as a byproduct of the Civil Rights and Black Power Movements. Richard Hatcher was elected mayor in 1967 illustrating the growing strength of the voting power of African Americans.

Hatcher was an attorney who was elected to the City Council in 1963. His election to the mayoral office took place in November 1967. Hatcher along with Carl B. Stokes of Cleveland, who was also elected in 1967, represented the first African Americans to be elected mayors in municipalities with more than 100,000 people.

Later in 1972, Gary was the scene of the National Black Political Convention (NBPC) in March of that year. The NBPC brought together an estimated 3,000 delegates from various states. Several thousands more attended as observers making it the largest national convention ever held by African Americans.

During this period African Americans were being elected as mayors, city councilpersons, commissioners, sheriffs, judges and mayors in areas across the North, Midwest, South and West coasts. These electoral victories had taken place initially during and in the aftermath of mass demonstrations, boycotts, strikes and urban rebellions.

However, by the mid-1970s, a major restructuring of the US and world economy was beginning to take shape. In Gary as well as other industrial cities such as Detroit, Cleveland, Flint, etc., massive job losses occurred.

The collapse in job and business opportunities precipitated the decline in populations who were moving to suburban areas outside the industrial cities and to other regions of the country particularly in the South. With the decline in populations in the industrial cities, the rates of poverty increased.

In order to fully understand the social conditions prevailing in Gary it is essential to review the labor and economy history of the area. These factors along with the failure of multinational power firms and financial institutions to invest in the upgrading of infrastructure within these municipalities and even suburbs, has resulted in the current environmental situation.

Another majority African American city in the mid-South, Memphis, also experienced similar problems in the aftermath of a storm during August. 100,000 customers of the power company in Memphis were out of service.

This is a pattern that has impacted African American communities across the US. Memphis, like Gary, has also been negatively impacted by a data center which is owned by Elon Musk, the former head of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).

According to an analytical report published by Capital B, it points out:

“When the power goes out in America, it does not go out equally. Research has found that Black communities face higher odds of outages and longer-duration interruptions. In Memphis and Gary, residents and elected officials say those disparities are compounded by poverty, aging infrastructure, and rising pressure on regional power systems…. High minority areas are four times as likely to suffer a blackout compared to predominantly white areas, and, specifically, being Black is associated with nearly two times higher odds of experiencing an outage lasting 24 consecutive hours than white households. In Memphis, this means thousands of households may be struggling for nearly a week in 90-degree heat. Studies show that without electricity, people die at elevated rates, especially people over the age of 65.” (https://capitalbnews.org/memphis-gary-black-communities-power-outages/)

These developments in recent weeks highlight the ongoing national oppression impacting the African American people. Consequently, African Americans and their allies must intensify organizing and mobilizing efforts to fight racism on a multi-faceted level involving economic disempowerment, exploitation, environmental degradation and the need for genuine equality and self-determination.

Trump Administration Escalates Third-Country Deportations

Opposition rises to the illegal removals of migrants from the United States to African and Latin American states which violates domestic and international law

By Abayomi Azikiwe

Editor, Pan-African News Wire

August 25, 2026

Political Review

Since the assumption of office by President Donald Trump for his second non-consecutive term in January 2025, the administration has enacted the deportations of individuals from the United States to several African and Latin American states.

These actions by the White House have prompted legal and political challenges to what are clearly violations of both US and international law.

Temporary Protected Status (TPS), which was designed to provide people from countries which are undergoing natural disasters and political turmoil with the possibility of remaining inside the US, is being revoked for numerous nationalities. Even nationals which had sided with the US against their own governments are having their TPS status revoked.

Just five years after the US military and administrative withdrawal from Afghanistan, those nationals who worked directly with Washington during the two decades of occupation by the Pentagon and NATO are now being told to leave. Others such as people from Venezuela and Syria are facing deportations even though many of them have renounced the revolutionary and socialist-oriented policies of their governments past and present. Even those who have openly proclaimed being loyal to the capitalist system are being told they cannot remain in the US.

Many of the deportees have been placed in detention facilities across the US and outside the country. El Salvador in Central America has been a site for illegal deportations.

In addition to El Salvador, several African states have agreed to accept deportees from the US which has been met with lawsuits regarding the Republic of Ghana where the administration of President John Mahama reached a secret deal with the Trump administration to accept people. Other states such as Eswatini, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Equatorial Guinea and Uganda have made agreements with Washington to accept third-country deportations. (https://www.thirdcountrydeportationwatch.org/)

Liberia Deportation Plan Reinforces Neo-Colonial Legacy

Most recently the Republic of Liberia, which has a long history of subservience to US neo-colonialism, agreed to accept 1,200 deportees. The escalation of deportees is designed to meet quotas set by the Trump administration to remove people from the US.

Many inside the US are saying that the “Make America Great Again” (MAGA) tendency within the Republican Party really means “Make America White Again.” Almost all of the targeted nationalities for deportation are from the Global South.

The specific focus on people from Latin America, Africa, the Caribbean and Asia speak volumes regarding the racist policies of the administration. Moreover, the removal of people of color from various geopolitical regions mirrors the domestic racism which has worsened under the present administration in Washington.

In the early phase of the second MAGA administration, the Trump White House has signed executive orders banning Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI). In addition, higher educational institutions are being attacked under the guise of combating “wokeness” and false claims of antisemitism stemming from the growing Palestine solidarity movement on the campuses where students, staff and faculties are demanding full disclosure and divestment from entities conducting business with the State of Israel.

Therefore, despite the rhetoric saying that the migrant communities are bringing crime and threats of terrorism into the US, African Americans and other oppressed peoples are being victimized through executive orders, congressional decisions and supreme court rulings which attack voting rights, job opportunities and admissions into colleges and universities.

In a report published by National Public Radio on August 25, it says of the present situation:

“Under a series of often-secret agreements, the Trump administration has deported thousands of people to nearly two dozen countries that are not their own, advocates say, with about 10 (or more) of them in Africa. A key issue in the agreements is that they can involve migrants with protection orders from a U.S. immigration judge not to be returned to their home countries because of concerns for their safety. The Liberian minister did not say if the deportees expected in Liberia had such protection orders…. Immigration lawyers have said the Trump administration uses deportations to third countries as a legal loophole to indirectly force asylum seekers back to their home countries. In many cases, migrants are deported to countries they've never been to or where they face safety risks and are left with little choice other than to return to the home countries they were fleeing from.” (https://www.npr.org/2026/08/19/nx-s1-5937389/liberia-to-take-deportees-from-us)

There are reportedly 15 African states who have accepted collaboration with the Trump administration. These governments have given different reasons for accepting deportees from the US who are not nationals of these specific African states.

Some, like Liberia, say their motivations are humanitarian. Others have mentioned reciprocal deals with Washington involving lower costs for admission visas into the US along with prospects for financial investments.

Ghana claimed that their agreement with the US only applies to people from the West Africa region. Yet, those who have been removed from detention facilities in the US to Ghana have complained about the conditions of removal and living arrangements once they arrive.

When the secret agreement between the Trump administration and Ghana was exposed during 2025, the judicial system in the US said that it did not have the capacity to force the return of these migrants which would be in line with domestic and international law.

US immigration agents place migrants on planes without telling them where they are being deported. Individuals being removed have reported that they were placed in straitjackets while being given only bread and water to consume.

With specific reference to Ghana, deportees say they were placed in a military camp under deplorable arrangements. Those flown to Ghana were not born there and had legally challenged the forced return to their own countries for specific reasons including threats of imprisonment, torture and other forms of persecution.

African states which have agreed to accepting illegally deported people from the US are Burundi, Cameroon, Cape Verde, Central African Republic, Democratic Republic of Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eswatini, Ghana, Liberia, Libya, Rwanda, Sierra Leone, South Sudan and Uganda. These policies undermine the overall image of African Union (AU) member-states making them appear to be surrogates of US imperialism.

Trump had openly referred to African states during his first administration in disparaging terms saying they were repositories for human waste. In the second non-consecutive term of office, the administration has cut off humanitarian assistance through agencies such as the World Health Organization (WHO) and the US Agency for International Development (USAID).

After eliminating USAID and withdrawing from the WHO, the State Department has been negotiating bilateral agreements with African states. Some of these states have accepted these imposed agreements from Washington while others such as Zimbabwe and Zambia have rejected these proposals outright.

The Kenya government accepted a plan to build an Ebola treatment center for US citizens only so they would not reenter the country until they were medically cleared or effectively treated for the disease which has grown substantially in recent months. However, people held mass demonstrations forcing the government of President William Ruto to withdraw from the plan.

Africa Remains Under Threat of Neo-Colonial Dominance

The imposition of the third-country deportations is further jeopardizing the potential for AU member-states to become self-reliant and genuinely sovereign. These deportations are illegal under the laws of the US as well as the United Nations.

Liberia was formed in the early 1820s as a place for the removal of formerly enslaved Africans from the US. The country became a republic in 1847, yet it has been dominated by the US government and multi-national corporations such as Firestone Rubber.

Although the Ghana government under Mahama has been an advocate of reparations for Africans due to the Atlantic Slave Trade and British colonialism, the secret deal with the Trump administration to receive migrants illegally deported from the US has undermined its political and moral authority as a spokesperson for the plight of Africans on the continent and throughout the world.

The AU Commission should address these contradictions in order to bolster its status as a viable regional organization committed to the unification of Africa. Under neo-colonialism, the new form of imperial domination, Africa will only become more underdeveloped through a form of indirect exploitation.

All of the negotiations conducted by the State Department and White House with African states are seeking further access to strategic minerals and metals. These resources belong to the majority of the African people for the purposes of human and infrastructural developments.

Tanzania’s Vice President Resigns in Test to the Country’s Democracy

By RODNEY MUHUMUZA

6:36 AM EDT, August 26, 2026

KAMPALA, Uganda (AP) — Tanzania’s vice president is resigning after less than a year in office, following what analysts say was a power struggle with the country’s first female leader.

Vice President Emmanuel Nchimbi offered to vacate the office on Sept. 4, according to a statement released on Tuesday. The presidency confirmed that constitutional measures will be taken to select a new deputy to President Samia Suluhu Hassan.

Nchimbi’s statement said he was “fully convinced” that Hassan desires another deputy. “I assure you that I will continue to be a good citizen of Tanzania,” it said.

His resignation is remarkable in a country known for its relative stability under the one-party rule of the Chama cha Mapinduzi party, or CCM.

Some analysts say he appeared to have disagreed with Hassan over governance and other issues stemming from the government’s brutal crackdown on street protests during and after the Oct. 29 election.

“The two were not on good terms,” said Tito Magoti, a rights attorney and independent analyst in the commercial capital of Dar es Salaam.

A postelection inquiry showed 518 people were killed in the violence, shocking many at home and abroad. The military was deployed alongside the police to quell riots in major cities, with sporadic gunfire ringing out in the usually peaceful country that many foreigners visit for its pristine coastal beaches and safari tourism.

The internet was shut down for days, a move that Hassan later apologized for and promised would never happen again.

The leader of the commission that investigated election-related violence, Mohamed Chande Othman, said during the release of his report in April that the number of deaths was likely higher, because some families buried their loved ones without taking their bodies to morgues. He recommended an investigation into the use of firearms, as some of the witnesses told the commission that their loved ones were shot while sitting inside their houses.

Hassan, who has served as president since 2021, drew widespread anger for running virtually unopposed after her two main opponents were blocked or prevented from contesting. Her main rival, Tundu Lissu, is currently jailed over treason charges he says are politically motivated.

A version of CCM has ruled Tanzania since the country gained independence from Britain in 1961. CCM is fused with the state and effectively in charge of the security apparatus.

Hassan, who was formerly a vice president, became president without incident when her predecessor, John Pombe Magufuli, died suddenly after the start of his second term.

The orderly transition sustained Tanzania’s reputation as an oasis of political stability and relative peace, a major reason for CCM’s considerable support, especially among rural voters.

___ An Associated Press reporter in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, contributed to this report.

Fastest-growing Ebola Outbreak on Record Threatens to Become Worst in History

The response to Congo’s raging Ebola epidemic has been hampered by a severe lack of funding and pervasive misinformation, according to people on the front lines.

August 26, 2026 at 5:00 a.m. EDT

Health workers tend to an Ebola patient at the Rwampara Treatment Center in Ituri, Congo, on June 18. (Moses Sawasawa/AP)

By Rael Ombuor and Rachel Chason

The Ebola epidemic raging in the Democratic Republic of Congo is on track to become the worst in history — amid a response hobbled by a severe lack of funding and rampant misinformation, according to doctors, relief organizations and global health authorities.

At least 5,605 people have been infected since the first case of the outbreak was identified May 15, of whom 2,683 had died as of Tuesday, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Congo’s government records similar figures. That means the outbreak is already bigger than the one that lasted from 2018 to 2022, which killed 2,200 people, and is spreading faster in its initial months than the West Africa epidemic that began in 2014 and caused more than 11,000 deaths.

At the same point in that outbreak — about 100 days after the first case had been reported — there were only 759 recorded cases, according to the CDC, less than 15 percent of what has been recorded so far in Congo’s outbreak.

Interviews with more than a dozen doctors, relief workers and patients operating in Ituri and North Kivu — the provinces at the heart of the outbreak — suggest that the confirmed figures are likely to represent only a fraction of the total current toll.

“The situation looks bad, and it is worsening,” said Alice Ribes, the Congo-based Ebola lead for the International Rescue Committee, a humanitarian group. “It’s spreading very, very fast.”

In Bunia, a city at the center of the heartbreak, there is a frightening dual reality: While the virus is quietly spreading, Ribes said, “life is continuing as if nothing is happening.”

“You have massive crowds,” she said. “Massive weddings, big parties. Churches that are completely full.”

Most people on the front lines of the response believe that the current “figures are underestimated,” she said.

“It’s a rapid fire,” said Grace Wairima, the senior Africa media and communications manager for Mercy Corps, an aid group.

The deadly viral disease spreads through direct contact with bodily fluids or contaminated surfaces. Wairima noted that many people with confirmed Ebola diagnoses do not appear on contact lists for others already in treatment. “The virus has moved through so many cracks,” she said.

Medical personnel and aid organizations say their ability to respond has been hampered by sweeping cuts in aid to Congo and the World Health Organization by the United States and other Western nations.

Especially in the early days of the outbreak, aid groups and medical personnel said, they lacked the staff, surveillance systems and emergency supplies to quickly detect infections or contain the virus as it surged. The U.S. Agency for International Development, or USAID, in particular, had operated in Congo for decades and worked in previous Ebola outbreaks — this the 17th — to coordinate with Congo’s Ministry of Health and aid organizations on the international response.

The State Department said in a statement Tuesday that it had announced more than $512 million in direct assistance to combat the ongoing outbreak, supported 8.6 million health screenings across affected and at-risk countries, reached more than 1 million people with risk communication messaging, supported more than 180 health facilities in affected areas, contributed to the direct operation of 12 special facilities in Congo, and procured and distributed nearly 300 metric tons of supplies, among other efforts.

The WHO has said that the outbreak — caused by the rare Bundibugyo virus, for which there is no vaccine or approved treatment — probably started as early as February, months before a global emergency was declared.

WHO Director General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said in a speech last week that the disease was moving with “unprecedented speed.”

“We must be frank: The epidemic is far from being under control,” he said. “It had a big head start, and we are still playing catch-up.”

Tedros added that what concerns him most is “where people are dying: at home, in their communities, outside treatment centers, and outside known contact lists. … Every death like that points to a chain of transmission we have not yet found.”

Maurice Kakule, the lead doctor on Ebola cases at the General Reference Hospital in Oicha in North Kivu, said that one of the biggest difference between this outbreak and the two previous ones on which he worked is the level of surveillance.

Kakule, 42, said that because many international organizations are stretched too thin to do surveillance this time around, some health workers at his hospital have taken it upon themselves to identify and track new cases.

He said misinformation is so intense that many people who suspect they have Ebola choose to die at home instead of going to the hospital, where they fear medical interventions. The true toll, he and other local medical personnel said, could be two to three times as high as the official statistics.

“It is likely to be the worst the country has experienced, given the number of deaths we have recorded in a few months,” he said.

Muhundi Sikwaya, 30, said he started feeling sick while working his welding job in Komanda, a town in Ituri. He lost his appetite for food and was too weak to work. He said he visited a hospital and was told he had contracted malaria.

But a week later, he was only getting worse, with blood in his vomit and diarrhea. His sister, Kavuho Nyasa, flagged down a person on a motorbike for the two-hour ride back to the hospital. She said she put her brother, by then mostly unconscious, on the back of the bike, sandwiched between the driver and another rider.

It was only once he arrived at the General Reference Hospital in Oicha that he was diagnosed with Ebola.

“I thought I was a dead person,” Sikwaya told The Post a week after he was discharged from the hospital in early July.

His sister said she worries about the driver, hoping he did not catch the virus.

Kakule had treated Sikwaya, along with three other Ebola patients. The other three died, Kakule said. Two more patients have since arrived.

UNICEF staff and airport workers in Bunia receive an aircraft carrying supplies on May 19 amid intensified efforts to contain the outbreak. (Gradel Muyisa Mumbere/Reuters)

More than a month after being discharged, Sikwaya said his life has changed. Mostly, he said, he stays at home, indoors, if he is not at work, because people are too scared to interact with him.

“There is a stigma, but nothing lasts forever,” he said. “I am sure this disease will also come to an end.”

Adam Taylor contributed to this report.

Ebola Outbreak in Eastern DR Congo Could Become Worst in History — Media

According to the newspaper, much of the population in eastern DR Congo was not following the necessary precautions against the virus

PRETORIA, August 26. /TASS/. The current Ebola outbreak in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) could become the largest ever recorded, The Washington Post reported, citing specialists working in Congolese provinces affected by the virus.

"The situation looks bad, and it is worsening," said Alice Ribes, the Congo-based Ebola lead for the International Rescue Committee, a humanitarian organization. "It’s spreading very, very fast," she noted.

Ribes said that much of the population in eastern DR Congo was not following the necessary precautions against the virus. This also applies to Bunia, the capital of Ituri Province and the epicenter of the current outbreak. While the virus is spreading, "life is continuing as if nothing is happening," she noted.

"You have massive crowds," Ribes said. "Massive weddings, big parties. Churches that are completely full." Most people on the front lines of the Ebola response believe that the current "figures are underestimated," she added.

Another challenge hindering efforts to fight Ebola is the lack of funding in the DRC. Medical personnel and aid organizations say their response capacity has been hampered by sweeping cuts in assistance to the DRC and the World Health Organization by the United States and other Western countries, the newspaper said. Especially in the early stages of the outbreak, they lacked staff, surveillance systems and emergency supplies to quickly detect infections or contain the virus.

Specialists say the current Ebola outbreak in the DRC is spreading faster than the one that began in West Africa in 2014 and killed 11,000 people, regarded as the largest in Africa’s history. According to the Congolese Health Ministry, 5,584 Ebola cases and 2,680 deaths have been recorded so far. The Washington Post said specialists working in virus-affected areas of the DRC believe these figures probably represent only a fraction of the total number of infections and deaths.

The outbreak, which began in the DRC and Uganda on May 15, has already become the second-deadliest ever recorded. Ebola cases have now been registered in six Congolese provinces. Ugandan authorities declared the outbreak in their country over on July 28.

Russian Troops Liberate Two Communities in Ukraine Operation Over Past Day — Top Brass

Russia’s Battlegroup North inflicted roughly 240 casualties on Ukrainian troops and destroyed an enemy tank and 14 motor vehicles in its areas of responsibility over the past day, the Defense Ministry reported

MOSCOW, August 26. /TASS/. Russian troops liberated two communities in the Sumy and Zaporozhye Regions over the past 24 hours in the special military operation in Ukraine, Russia’s Defense Ministry reported.

"Battlegroup North units took control of the settlement of Pisarevka in the Sumy Region through decisive operations. <…> Battlegroup East units kept advancing deep into the enemy’s defenses and liberated the settlement of Nezhenka in the Zaporozhye Region through active operations," the ministry said in a statement.

Kiev loses 1,405 troops along engagement line in past day – latest figures

The Ukrainian army lost roughly 1,405 troops in battles with Russian forces in all the frontline areas over the past 24 hours, according to the latest data on the special military operation in Ukraine released by Russia’s Defense Ministry.

The latest figures show that the Ukrainian army lost roughly 240 troops, a tank and 14 motor vehicles in the responsibility area of Russia’s Battlegroup North, about 210 troops and two US-made armored vehicles in the responsibility area of the Battlegroup West and more than 215 troops and four field artillery guns in the responsibility area of the Battlegroup South.

During the last 24-hour period, the Ukrainian army also lost roughly 365 troops and an armored combat vehicle in the responsibility area of Russia’s Battlegroup Center, over 345 troops and two armored combat vehicles in the responsibility area of the Battlegroup East and about 30 troops and a howitzer in the responsibility area of the Battlegroup Dnepr, the latest figures show.

Russia’s Battlegroup North inflicts 240 casualties on Ukrainian army in past day

During the last 24-hour period, Battlegroup North units "inflicted losses on manpower and equipment of two mechanized brigades, two airmobile brigades of the Ukrainian army and a territorial defense brigade in areas near the settlements of Tolstodubovo, Proletarskoye, Sadki and Kiyanitsa in the Sumy Region," the ministry said.

In the Kharkov direction, Battlegroup North units inflicted losses on formations of two mechanized brigades, a motorized infantry brigade, an assault regiment, an unmanned systems battalion of the Ukrainian army, three territorial defense brigades and a National Guard brigade in areas near the settlements of Prikolotnoye, Buzovo, Tsupovka, Novoaleksandrovka, Liptsy and Slatino in the Kharkov Region, the ministry reported.

The Ukrainian army lost an estimated 240 personnel, a tank and 14 motor vehicles in those frontline areas over the past 24 hours, it specified.

Russia’s Battlegroup West inflicts 210 casualties on Ukrainian army in past day

Russia’s Battlegroup West inflicted roughly 210 casualties on Ukrainian troops and destroyed two US-made armored vehicles in its area of responsibility over the past day, the ministry reported.

"Battlegroup West units gained better lines and positions and inflicted losses on manpower and equipment of two mechanized brigades, an assault brigade of the Ukrainian army and a territorial defense brigade in areas near the settlements of Proletarskoye and Vyssheye Solyonoye in the Kharkov Region, Bogorodichnoye, Sidorovo, Mayaki, Raigorodok and Svyatogorsk in the Donetsk People’s Republic," the ministry said.

The Ukrainian army lost an estimated 210 personnel, two US-made HMMWV armored vehicles, 17 pickup trucks and an electronic warfare station in that frontline area over the past 24 hours, it specified.

Russia’s Battlegroup South inflicts over 215 casualties on Ukrainian army in past day

Russia’s Battlegroup South inflicted more than 215 casualties on Ukrainian troops and destroyed four enemy field artillery guns in its area of responsibility over the past day, the ministry reported.

"Battlegroup South units improved their forward positions and inflicted losses on formations of three mechanized brigades, a motorized infantry brigade, an assault brigade, an airmobile brigade, a mountain assault brigade and an unmanned systems battalion of the Ukrainian army in areas near the settlements of Kramatorsk, Slavyansk, Druzhkovka, Krasny Molochar, Nikolayevka, Semyonovka and Alekseyevo-Druzhkovka in the Donetsk People’s Republic," the ministry said.

The Ukrainian army lost more than 215 personnel, 25 motor vehicles and four field artillery guns in that frontline area over the past 24 hours, it specified.

Russia’s Battlegroup Center inflicts over 365 casualties on Ukrainian army in past day

Russia’s Battlegroup Center inflicted more than 365 casualties on Ukrainian troops and destroyed an enemy armored combat vehicle in its area of responsibility over the past day, the ministry reported.

"Battlegroup Center units continued advancing deep into the enemy’s defenses and inflicted losses on manpower and equipment of two mechanized brigades, a jaeger brigade of the Ukrainian army, a marine infantry brigade and four National Guard brigades in areas near the settlements of Raiskoye, Andreyevka, Druzhkovka, Slavyanka, Novogrigorovka, Novotroitskoye, Belozerskoye, Dobropolye and Roganskoye in the Donetsk People’s Republic," the ministry said.

The Ukrainian army lost more than 365 personnel, a Kozak armored combat vehicle, five motor vehicles, an artillery gun and an electronic warfare station in that frontline area over the past 24 hours, it specified.

Russia’s Battlegroup East inflicts over 345 casualties on Ukrainian army in past day

Russia’s Battlegroup East inflicted more than 345 casualties on Ukrainian troops and destroyed two enemy armored combat vehicles in its area of responsibility over the past day, the ministry reported.

During the last 24-hour period, Battlegroup East units "inflicted losses on manpower and equipment of two assault brigades, two air assault brigades, three assault regiments, an unmanned systems battalion of the Ukrainian army and a marine infantry brigade in areas near the settlements of Malinovka, Malomikhailovka, Ivanovka and Vasilkovka in the Dnepropetrovsk Region, Obshcheye, Barvinovka and Omelnik in the Zaporozhye Region," the ministry said.

The Ukrainian army lost more than 345 personnel, two armored combat vehicles and three motor vehicles in that frontline area over the past 24 hours, it specified.

Russia’s Battlegroup Dnepr eliminates 30 Ukrainian troops in past day

Russia’s Battlegroup Dnepr eliminated roughly 30 Ukrainian troops and destroyed an enemy howitzer in its area of responsibility over the past day, the ministry reported.

"Battlegroup Dnepr units inflicted losses on manpower and equipment of a mechanized brigade and a mountain assault brigade of the Ukrainian army in areas near the settlements of Orekhov, Dimitrovo, Novoyakovlevka, Chervonaya Krinitsa and Preobrazhenka in the Zaporozhye Region," the ministry said.

"Up to 30 [Ukrainian] military personnel, 32 motor vehicles, a 122mm D-30 howitzer and three electronic warfare stations were destroyed," it said.

Russian troops strike logistics centers, energy sites used by Ukrainian army in past day

Russian troops struck logistics centers, energy infrastructure used by the Ukrainian army and enemy deployment sites over the past 24 hours, the ministry reported.

"Operational/tactical aircraft, attack unmanned aerial vehicles, missile troops and artillery of the Russian groups of forces struck logistics centers, fuel and energy, transport and port infrastructure facilities in Ukraine used by the Ukrainian army, ammunition and materiel depots, workshops assembling and sites storing unmanned aerial vehicles and their components, and also temporary deployment areas of Ukrainian armed formations and foreign mercenaries in 141 locations," the ministry said.

Russian air defenses intercept 798 Ukrainian UAVs, 12 smart bombs over past day

Russian air defense forces intercepted and destroyed 798 Ukrainian unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) and 12 smart bombs over the past 24 hours, the ministry reported.

"Air defense capabilities shot down 12 guided aerial bombs, a rocket of the US-made HIMARS multiple launch rocket system, three Flamingo long-range cruise missiles and 798 fixed-wing unmanned aerial vehicles," the ministry said.

Russian forces destroy over 220,000 military drones in Ukraine operation

Russian forces have destroyed more than 220,000 unmanned aerial vehicles of the Ukrainian army since the start of the special military operation in Ukraine, the ministry reported.

"Overall, the following targets have been destroyed since the start of the special military operation: 674 aircraft, 284 helicopters, 220,067 unmanned aerial vehicles, 669 surface-to-air missile systems, 30,725 tanks and other armored combat vehicles, 1,775 multiple rocket launchers, 36,274 field artillery guns and mortars and 70,240 special military motor vehicles," the ministry said.

Reality Sets in for Ukraine’s Former Defense Chief, Russian Envoy Says

Kirill Dmitriev also noted that "the blame game for failures" begins in Ukraine

Russia’s Special Presidential Representative for Investment and Economic Cooperation with Foreign Countries Kirill Dmitriev Sergey Bulkin/TASS

Russia’s Special Presidential Representative for Investment and Economic Cooperation with Foreign Countries Kirill Dmitriev

MOSCOW, August 26. /TASS/. A remark from ex-Ukrainian Defense Minister Mikhail Fydorov that Kiev is gradually losing ground to Russia on the battlefield shows that reality finally sets in for him, according to Kirill Dmitriev, Special Representative of the Russian President for Investment and Economic Cooperation with Foreign Countries and Head of the Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF).

"The reality sets in, false narratives collapse, and the blame game for failures begins," Dmitriev commented in a post on X.

Earlier, Fyodorov told Reuters in an interview that Ukraine urgently needs to figure out a way to end the conflict pronto. At the same time, he said, Ukraine suffers from "an inability to innovate, entrenched corruption and nepotism and a lack of political independence in government institutions."

Ukrainian Forces Shell DPR Populated Areas 17 Times Over Past Day

11 civilians, including two children, were injured

DONETSK, August 27. /TASS/. Ukrainian forces shelled populated areas of the Donetsk People’s Republic (DPR) 17 times over the past day, injuring 11 civilians, including two children, the department for documenting Ukrainian war crimes under the administration of the DPR head and government said.

"Seventeen armed attacks by Ukrainian armed formations were recorded <...> over the past day. Reports were received that 11 civilians, including two children, were injured. Additional information was received about two civilians injured on February 23 and April 13 in the populated area of Konstantinovka," the statement said.

According to the department, Ukrainian forces fired 25 munitions. Eight residential buildings, 11 civilian infrastructure facilities, and passenger vehicles were damaged.

Nine Killed, Six Wounded: What We Know About Ukrainian Attack on Passenger Bus in LPR

Leonid Pasechnik stated that the Ukrainian armed forces’ strike was targeted

LUGANSK, August 26. /TASS/. Nine people were killed and six more wounded in a Ukrainian strike on a passenger bus traveling from Lisichansk to Stakhanov in the Lugansk People’s Republic (LPR), Head of the LPR Leonid Pasechnik said.

TASS has gathered key facts about the Ukrainian attack

Ukrainian military attack

- The Ukrainian military delivered a strike on a passenger bus on the Zolotoye-Pervomaisk highway.

- The bus was en route from Lisichansk to Stakhanov.

- Pasechnik stated that the Ukrainian armed forces’ strike was targeted.

- The bus carried 15 passengers, he specified.

Killed and wounded

- As a result of the attack, eight people were killed on the spot.

- Six more sustained wounds.

- A twenty-year-old girl was rushed an intensive care unit. Doctors fought for her life, but they couldn't save her.

- Her mother was wounded.

- An 18-year-old girl was also injured, she was hospitalized.

- Three more passengers and the driver received the necessary medical assistance, they were referred for outpatient treatment.

Investigation

- The Russian Investigative Committee has launched a criminal case on charges of terrorism in regard to the Ukrainian attack on a passenger bus in the LPR, Svetlana Petrenko, a spokesperson for the Investigative Committee of the Russian Federation, told TASS.

- The Investigative Committee organized a set of measures to collect evidence, establish the type and model of the unmanned aerial vehicle of the Ukrainian armed forces, as well as all the details of the incident.

Reaction

- The Ukrainian military attack on a bus in the LPR cannot be a mistake, it is another terrorist attack by the Kiev regime, military expert Andrey Marochko told TASS.

- He noted that "the UAV operator sees in real time where he strikes."

- Pasechnik called the Ukrainian military attack on the bus an act of terrorism by the bloody Kiev regime.

Ukraine Attacks Donetsk with Anglo-French Storm Shadow/SCALP-EG Cruise Missiles

Eight civilians were injured, head of the republic Denis Pushilin said

DONETSK, August 26. /TASS/. Ukraine has used Anglo-French long-range cruise missiles Storm Shadow/SCALP-EG to attack the center of Donetsk, where eight civilians were injured, head of the republic Denis Pushilin said on Max messenger.

"In the Kievsky district of Donetsk, as a result of an attack by Anglo-French long-range cruise missiles of the air-launched Storm Shadow/SCALP-EG in the area of the Donetsk City shopping and entertainment center a child, a girl born in 2016 and a woman born in 1973 were moderately injured, a teenage girl born in 2010 and a woman born in 1947, men born in 1987, 1981, 1977 and 1949 were injured," he wrote.

Tuesday, August 25, 2026

Egypt Expected to Embrace Cooperation as Ethiopia Exercises Its Water Rights: Prof. Yacob

Addis Ababa, August 25, 2026 (ENA)— Egypt is expected to pursue cooperation for shared benefit as Ethiopia exercises its sovereign right to harness and develop its water resources, Hydro politics scholar Professor Yacob Arsano told ENA.

Water development in Ethiopia is still in its infancy, Prof. Yacob underscored.

“Ethiopia’s water resources remain largely underdeveloped, yet they will be central to the country’s future economic growth and development,” he noted, stressing that the country’s water resources remain largely untapped for agriculture, power generation, tourism and other productive sectors, the renowned scholar said.

He noted that Ethiopia’s future growth and development will inevitably depend, in significant part, on its ability to effectively harness and utilize its water resources on Abay (Nile) River.

“Therefore, its right to utilize its water resources is guaranteed,” the professor said.

Professor Yacob further emphasized that the Ethiopian government and its people are determined to turn that right into reality.

Yacob stressed that Ethiopia does not require permission from Egypt to develop its own water resources.

“Fundamentally, no one is waiting for Egypt to grant permission,” he said, adding that Ethiopia has never sought Egypt’s permission to utilize and develop its water resources and will not do so in the future.

At the same time, he emphasized that Ethiopia’s assertion of its sovereign development rights does not rule out cooperation.

“The door remains open if Egypt comes to its senses and returns to negotiations,” Prof. Yacob said.

He added that Ethiopia’s position is broadly shared by other upstream Abay (Nile) Basin countries, which maintain their right to utilize their water resources for development while remaining open to cooperation based on dialogue and mutual benefit.

Ethiopia’s approach, he said, is therefore anchored in two principles: the sovereign right to develop its water resources and the willingness to cooperate for shared benefit.

Ethiopia has planned to consolidate the momentum created by the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) by expanding investment in additional mega dams on the Abay River.

In his recent interview, Water and Energy Minister Habtamu Itefa said: “Ethiopia does not need permission from anyone to develop its water resources as it is a sovereign country,”.

“Who said that we need permission from anyone? Ethiopia is a sovereign country... Look, we built the GERD without the permission, and we will also build other dams on other river basins whenever the needs arise,” he elaborated.

WHO Chief Says Africa Made Significant Progress in Health Gains Despite Sharp Cuts in Global Funding

Addis Ababa, August 25, 2026 (ENA) —Africa has made notable progress on key health targets even as the continent faces the deepest cuts to international health financing in a generation, World Health Organization (WHO) Director-General, Dr. Tedros Adhanom, said.

Speaking at a webinar during the 76th session of the WHO Regional Committee for Africa in Addis Ababa this morning, the Director-General noted that multiple countries continued advancing disease-control goals despite funding freezes that have disrupted life-saving services across the region.

Some 8 countries, including Algeria, Burundi, Cabo Verde, Guinea, Kenya, Mauritius and Senegal have reached major milestones in disease elimination, according to Dr. Tedros.

The Director-General also noted that more than 28 million doses of donated essential medicines were delivered, even amid financing disruptions, with the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) cited as an example of a country carrying the world’s largest sleeping sickness burden.

On HIV, Dr. Tedros said 21.7 million people living with the virus remain on uninterrupted treatment. Several countries, including Botswana, Eswatini, Lesotho, Namibia, Rwanda, Zambia and Zimbabwe, have already met the 95-95-95 targets.

Progress in tuberculosis care was also highlighted, with treatment coverage rising to 74 percent, compared with 52 percent in 2020. Uganda is now treating more than 90 percent of estimated TB cases.

The WHO chief further credited efforts to improve vaccination coverage, saying health system improvements have enabled the catch-up of more than 18 million children who had missed vaccines.

Malaria advances were also reported after the malaria vaccine rollout reached 25 countries.

Additional achievements mentioned included new human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination introductions in six countries, and Cabo Verde, Mauritius and Seychelles becoming the first sub-Saharan states to achieve verified measles and rubella elimination.

Mental health access has also expanded with four million additional people gaining access to services, Dr. Tedros said.

He also described strengthening outbreak detection and response, saying both Ethiopia’s Marburg outbreak and the DRC’s previous Ebola outbreak were contained within 90 days.

Despite the gains, the Director-General warned that Africa remains under severe pressure. Families still pay about one-third of health spending out of pocket; cholera has reached a regional record of more than 245,000 cases; and 44 of 47 countries cannot reliably record causes of death.

He further pointed to ongoing maternal and child mortality, saying around 70 percent of maternal deaths and nearly half of under-five deaths worldwide occur in Africa.

The Director-General said DRC is battling a major ongoing Ebola crisis—the second largest in history—with spread described as faster than in previous outbreaks.

According to Dr. Tedros, WHO is scaling up the response with DRC’s government, Africa CDC and partners, while also advancing clinical trials of three vaccines and three treatments.

He emphasized that Ebola is only one threat in DRC and that strengthening health systems must remain the top priority to support universal health coverage.

The Director-General noted that the health system task in general has become harder because funding cuts were sudden rather than gradual, leading to clinic closures and job losses affecting HIV, TB, malaria, neglected tropical diseases, and maternal and newborn care.

However, some countries are also working to expand domestic revenue, including tobacco tax reforms and increased domestic funding for HIV and TB, citing South Africa and Nigeria.

Moreover, Africa now has an opportunity to reduce dependency by building “health sovereignty,” self-reliance and solidarity, he stressed.

WHO has begun preparing for funding reductions during transformation efforts launched in 2017, after identifying reliance on a limited donor base as a risk.

The Director-General acknowledged that many voluntary contributions remain earmarked, creating gaps in some areas.

Dr. Tedros outlined five priorities for the coming year: completing the path strategy for the pandemic agreement; approving the next assessed contribution increase at next May’s World Health Assembly; engaging in reforms to strengthen the global health architecture; supporting the Ebola response in DRC; and continuing WHO transformation toward a leaner organization focused on delivering results at country level.

Sudan Anti-war Forces Reject El Burhan Dialogue Call

24/08/2026 20:42

ADDIS ABABA

Anti-war civil and political forces pose for a group photo during their meeting in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, on Sunday, 23 August 2026 (Photo: Social media)

Sudanese anti-war civilian and political forces have rejected Sovereignty Council President and Commander-in-Chief of the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) Lt Gen Abdelfattah El Burhan’s call for political dialogue, arguing that no credible political process can take place while the war continues.

The position was renewed at the end of a two-day meeting in Ethiopia’s capital of Addis Ababa, where political parties, including the forces behind the “Sudanese Declaration of Principles”, the Popular Congress Party, the Umma Party, civil society organisations, and feminist and youth networks agreed that Sudan needs a genuine peace process focused on stopping the fighting and addressing the humanitarian crisis.

The participants described El Burhan’s dialogue call as a political manoeuvre aimed at consolidating the army’s authority, granting it political legitimacy and paving the way for elements of the former regime and the Islamic movement to return to power.

The participants adopted a joint position paper, The Peace Process We Want, calling for an independent political process free from the dominance of either party to the conflict and rejecting dialogue that could entrench military rule.

Former Prime Minister and Civil Democratic Alliance of Revolutionary Forces (Sumoud) president Abdalla Hamdok described the Addis Ababa gathering as a major development for Sudan’s civilian forces. He said the meeting had disproved expectations that the civilian camp could not unite.

Despite the scale of the country’s crisis, Hamdok said “hope is there” and urged continued efforts to overcome the conditions that have prolonged the war.

The anti-war forces reaffirmed their support for the Quadrilateral Roadmap issued in September 2025 and called for a unified international mediation framework.

Their proposed action plan includes measures for the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) to de-escalate the conflict and agree to an immediate truce. Participants also agreed to form a joint committee to coordinate the positions and vision of the anti-war civilian camp. Investin Sudan

The meeting concluded with an appeal to Sudanese people at home and abroad to reject the war, confront hate speech and polarisation, and work towards a comprehensive peace that restores civilian authority and preserves Sudan’s unity.

Denmark, UK, France Back US Proposal to Expand Sudan Arms Embargo – China, Russia Oppose

25/08/2026 12:41

NEW YORK / KHARTOUM

Sudanese Armed Forces soldiers in Khartoum (File photo: SAF media) Sudanesefood recipes

A US proposal to expand the arms embargo on Darfur to cover drones and the whole of Sudan has prompted widespread reactions among representatives of countries taking part in Monday’s UN Security Council session on Sudan. Representatives of Denmark, Britain, and France backed the US proposal, while China, Russia, and Sudan’s UN representative opposed it. Sudan’s army chief and head of the Sovereignty Council, Abdelfattah El Burhan, meanwhile, played down the potential impact of any additional sanctions or embargo on the country in a speech at a police graduation ceremony in Khartoum.

As reported previously by Radio Dabanga, the USA has proposed expanding the arms embargo currently imposed on Sudan’s Darfur region to cover the entire country, in an attempt to stem the flow of weapons and drones fueling the war that has continued since April 2023.

Massad Boulos, the US president’s senior adviser for Arab and African affairs, told the UN Security Council session on Sudan on Monday that more than 12 countries were providing various forms of military support to the two warring parties, helping to prolong the conflict and increase civilian casualties.

The US proposals include clarifying that the arms embargo covers drones, their components, and related technologies, as well as strengthening the capacity of the panel of experts responsible for monitoring sanctions and increasing its cooperation with other UN sanctions teams and panels.

Call to extend ICC jurisdiction to all of Sudan

Denmark’s foreign minister, Lars Løkke Rasmussen, whose country holds the Security Council presidency for August, also called for the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court to be extended to cover the whole of Sudan.

Speaking to the session, Rasmussen said the Security Council had a responsibility to stop the war, which he said was destabilising the entire region. He called for a humanitarian truce leading to a ceasefire, describing it as “the only way to achieve genuine protection for civilians”.

Russia’s representative to the Security Council, Vasily A Nebenzya, said his country opposed the US proposal to expand Security Council sanctions or the arms embargo on Sudan.

“Recently, we have heard worrying assessments of the expanding use of combat drones in the context of the Sudanese conflict, amid calls for a comprehensive ban on supplying the country with these systems and related technologies,” Nebenzya told the council. “We agree that attack drones pose a serious threat.”

Nebenzya said the Rapid Support Forces did not use drones merely in a random and indiscriminate manner, but often deployed them with the aim of causing the greatest possible damage to civilian infrastructure and civilian populations. By contrast, he said, the Sudanese Armed Forces sought to be precise when carrying out attacks.

“It is unacceptable to claim that both sides of the conflict bear equal responsibility for the consequences of weapons use,” he said, arguing that one side was spreading chaos and violence, while the other was essentially conducting an operation to neutralise those who were, in reality, rebels destroying the country.

‘Sanctions are borne by Sudanese citizens’

The Russian representative also expressed dissatisfaction with sanctions imposed on Sudan, pointing to an EU ban on imports of Sudanese gold imposed last July. He said Washington had also expanded its restrictions, including a ban on international financial institutions providing credit, or financial and technical assistance, to Sudan.

“We consider such measures unacceptable and hostile towards the country’s government,” he said. “At a time when the Sudanese economy is suffering from years of conflict, and the state needs resources more than ever to rehabilitate the health sector, water supplies, agriculture, and other essential infrastructure, this policy of economic strangulation raises serious questions.” Sudanesefood recipes

He stressed that ordinary Sudanese would ultimately bear the greatest burden of the consequences of the new restrictions.

“From the same perspective, we view any attempts to expand the existing UN Security Council sanctions regime against Sudan,” he said. “We are convinced that the way to alleviate the suffering of the Sudanese people does not lie in continuing to drain the Sudanese economy, but in ending hostilities, expanding humanitarian assistance, and supporting the country’s recovery efforts.”

China opposes external solutions

China’s representative praised steps taken by Sudan’s government to facilitate humanitarian operations, saying that sanctions were a means rather than an end in themselves.

He stressed that the Security Council should respect Sudan’s sovereignty and institutions, adding that China did not support imposing external solutions on the country.

Khartoum rejects expansion

Sudan’s representative to the UN, El Harith Idris, rejected the expansion of the arms embargo beyond its current scope during the Security Council deliberations.

He said the draft resolution would effectively equate the army with the Rapid Support Forces and undermine Sudan’s sovereignty. Idris called on the Security Council instead to renew the existing measures while strengthening their enforcement against those violating the arms embargo, and to subject external networks supplying weapons and drones to greater scrutiny.

He said the government was committed to protecting its citizens to the greatest extent possible, having established a national mechanism for civilian protection and worked to facilitate the return of displaced people. By the end of June, he said, 5.8 million voluntary returns had been recorded.

Idris said the government remained committed to international humanitarian law and international human rights law, and that security forces were redeploying as control over territory was restored.

‘The people will not break’

In Khartoum, army chief and Sovereignty Council head Gen Abdelfattah El Burhan said talk of possible sanctions against the country would have no effect and would not weaken Sudan’s resolve.

Speaking on Monday at a graduation ceremony for the 22nd intake of police officers at the Police Sciences and Law College in Khartoum, El Burhan said: “Our lives and our destiny are in God’s hands.”

He urged Sudanese not to pay attention to what he described as claims by “enemies and those with ulterior motives” about the imposition of a no-fly zone over the country. Sudanesefood recipes

“Our message to those staying in hotels abroad and applauding sanctions to subjugate the Sudanese people is that the people will not break, and collapse and disappointment will befall you,” he said.

He added that those people would not be able to rule the Sudanese people again.

Editor’s note: This article was translated from Arabic with the assistance of artificial intelligence, and subsequently reviewed and adapted by a human editor before publication.

US Moots Expanding Darfur Arms Embargo to Cover Drones and All of Sudan

25/08/2026 10:17 NEW YORK

The USA has proposed expanding the arms embargo currently imposed on Sudan’s Darfur region to cover the entire country, in an attempt to stem the flow of weapons and drones fuelling the war that has continued since April 2023.

Boulos said the US had “put forward a strong draft resolution that contains four key elements, foremost among them expanding the arms embargo to cover the entire territory of Sudan, with drones, systems, and related technologies falling within its scope”.

He said the draft resolution calls on the secretary general to increase the number of experts on the panel established under Resolution 1591, while urging it to cooperate with other expert panels covering the region. The aim, he said, was to provide the Security Council with better information on violations of the asset freeze, travel ban, and arms embargo.

The existing embargo, under the sanctions regime established by Security Council Resolution 1591 in 2005, is limited to Darfur and does not cover the rest of Sudan. Its extension would require Security Council approval before it could become binding.

Boulos warned that the flow of weapons from abroad had drawn Sudan into an escalating arms race, with military support for one side prompting a corresponding increase in support for the other, turning the war into a “death spiral” for which civilians were paying the price.

He pointed to the growing use of drones by the Sudanese army and the Rapid Support Forces to target hospitals, bridges, humanitarian crossings, and civilian infrastructure. The lack of identifying markings on many drones, combined with their ability to be operated remotely, makes it difficult to establish who is responsible for attacks and hold them to account, he said. تاريخ

Boulos said the conflict had forced civilians to flee their homes, which were subsequently looted, while many faced horrific atrocities and abuses even as they fled to safer areas. They were also forced to hide from aircraft and drones targeting civilian locations.

He said the growing use of drones had caused widespread destruction, killing more than 1,120 Sudanese civilians during the first half of this year – almost 80% of all recorded civilian deaths in 2026.

Boulos said the army and the RSF were choosing to focus their efforts on escalating violence, seizing new territory, and pursuing an elusive military victory, driven by a desire for revenge and thirst for power, rather than seeking a humanitarian truce and a path towards peace.

He called on the sanctions committee to examine ways of addressing these developments in the methods of warfare, and urged the panel of experts to investigate more extensively the smuggling of gold and links between its proceeds and networks involved in purchasing weapons and drones.

The US official renewed his call for a comprehensive humanitarian truce that would ensure aid could reach civilians across borders and frontlines, paving the way for a permanent ceasefire and an independent, inclusive political process leading to a democratic, civilian-led transition.

Sudan War: A Conflict Sustained by Weapons, Fragmentation, and Diplomatic Inertia

25/08/2026 09:07

Rosemary DiCarlo, UN Under-Secretary-General for Political and Peacebuilding Affairs, briefs the Security Council on Monday, August 24th (Photo: UN)

Sudan’s war is becoming harder to stop, not easier. That was the central warning from Rosemary DiCarlo, the UN’s Under-Secretary-General for Political and Peacebuilding Affairs, in her briefing to the Security Council on Monday, August 24th. After more than three years of fighting, the conflict is spreading across several fronts, becoming more technologically sophisticated, and drawing in an increasingly complicated array of armed groups and outside interests.

The human cost is already staggering. Some 13m Sudanese have fled their homes, including 8.7m displaced within the country. The UN has documented around 1,400 civilian deaths between January and June this year, 1,100 of them caused by drone strikes. The real death toll is probably in the hundreds of thousands. “Brutal mass killings and atrocities, abductions of women and girls and mass rapes are recurring patterns,” DiCarlo told the Council. Drones operated by both the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) have repeatedly hit markets, schools, fuel stations, and water infrastructure.

The fighting has also become more geographically dispersed. Heavy drone attacks and limited ground combat have concentrated in North Kordofan, West Darfur, North Darfur, and Blue Nile. In and around El Obeid, the SAF and RSF are competing for strategically important territory, while fighting near Sudan’s borders with Chad and Ethiopia raises the prospect of a wider regional conflict. In Blue Nile, DiCarlo warned, insecurity near the Ethiopian border could strain relations between neighbouring states and generate further refugee flows.

More troubling still is the growing sophistication of the war. “The sophisticated weaponry used continues to point to ongoing external support to both parties,” she said. Foreign backing is allowing the combatants to sustain a level of warfare that neither could easily maintain alone. At the same time, the proliferation of local militias and other armed movements is fragmenting the battlefield. Groups beyond the SAF and RSF are pursuing their own territorial, political and security interests, making both a ceasefire and a political settlement more difficult.

Diplomacy has not been absent, but it has yet to alter the calculations of the warring parties. The UN is supporting efforts by the United States, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, and the United Arab Emirates to secure a humanitarian truce, while working with the African Union, IGAD, the Arab League and the European Union on a broader political process. A new round of in-person talks involving Sudanese political and civilian actors is due to take place in Addis Ababa in September. The aim is an inclusive, Sudanese-led dialogue in which women, young people, displaced communities, and other civilian groups have a meaningful role.

The UN’s personal envoy, Pekka Haavisto, is meanwhile trying to build confidence between the combatants, including through discussions over prisoner exchanges and unilateral releases, with particular attention to women and children. Both sides, DiCarlo said, now need to make concrete commitments.

Yet the central obstacle remains military calculation. Despite international mediation, the SAF and RSF remain locked in what DiCarlo called a “zero-sum military logic”: each still appears to believe that victory on the battlefield is preferable to compromise at the negotiating table. External supporters have helped sustain that belief.

The UN’s conclusion is therefore less a prescription than a challenge to the countries capable of influencing the combatants. The Security Council must send “strong and unified messages” and use all the tools at its disposal to push the parties back towards negotiations. External actors, too, must do more than express concern.

For Sudan’s civilians, the diplomatic timetable is already too slow. “The Sudanese people cannot wait any longer,” DiCarlo concluded. The longer the war continues, the more deeply it is embedded in Sudan’s political, territorial, and regional landscape—and the harder peace will become to achieve.

Port Sudan Detainees Launch Hunger Strike over ‘Endless’ Trial Delays

25/08/2026 13:11

PORT SUDAN

By Suleiman Siri for Radio Dabanga

At least 83 detainees at Port Sudan Central Prison in Red Sea state have begun an indefinite hunger strike, effecting 06:00 today, protesting what they described as violations of their constitutional and legal right to a “fair and expeditious trial”, caused by the “systematic obstruction” of their cases for years as they are all being brought before a single judge.

The detainees addressed a lengthy memorandum to Sovereignty Council chairman Gen Abdelfattah El Burhan, seen by Radio Dabanga, detailing what they described as shocking conditions inside the prison. They face charges of collaborating with the Rapid Support Forces, under articles 50 and 51 of the 1991 Criminal Act, relating to undermining the constitutional order and waging war against the state. The offences carry penalties of life imprisonment or death.

The detainees expressed deep frustration at being held in Port Sudan prison for almost two full years. Some, they said, had spent two years in detention without even being referred to court. This, they argued, had overturned all “legal standards” and transformed pre-trial detention – which is legally supposed to be an exceptional and temporary measure – into a prolonged, pre-emptive punishment without legal or humanitarian justification.

They complained of repeated adjournments and lengthy gaps between hearings, adding: “The crisis has become catastrophic because there is only one judge covering [the cases of] 83 detainees.” They said this was a human and administrative situation in which it was impossible to achieve any meaningful degree of justice or ensure the orderly administration of proceedings.

Families of the detainees interviewed by Radio Dabanga also described their suffering, particularly as they live outside Red Sea state and have to travel to visit their relatives held in Port Sudan prison. This means bearing the additional costs of travel and accommodation to check on their relatives and follow their cases, on top of lawyers’ fees, despite the presence of volunteer lawyers.

The sister of one prisoner told Radio Dabanga that the family was struggling to attend her brother’s hearings because of the repeated adjournments, particularly as they travel from distant states in the hope of securing his acquittal. She said the families were also being punished by these procedures, alongside their relatives in prison.

Since the outbreak of war on 15 April 2023, the number of detainees and convicted people held on political charges of collaborating with the RSF has exceeded 400. The number has since fallen to 261 detainees and convicted prisoners, thanks to decisions by the court of appeal, despite lengthy delays in proceedings, after lower courts had handed down death sentences and life imprisonment.

Human rights reports by local and international organisations have documented campaigns of arrests by military intelligence units and special operations forces in several states, targeting volunteers from resistance committees, emergency and service committees, and human rights defenders, without clear reasons.

Prisoners at Port Sudan Central Prison generally complain of deteriorating humanitarian conditions and a worsening sanitary environment, with severe overcrowding as prison wards are packed beyond their capacity. Services have also deteriorated, food is scarce, and medical care is completely absent. Their suffering increases during the summer, with high temperatures and humidity.

Absence of public prosecution representatives

According to their memorandum, the detainees said they were suffering from what they described as the deliberate and repeated disruption of court hearings because of the continued absence of public prosecution representatives, complainants, and prosecution witnesses. They said no firm measures had been taken against those who failed to attend, turning the judicial process into an endless series of unjustified adjournments that “keep us hostage behind bars without any substantive basis”.

They said the prolonged pre-trial detention and continued disruption had left prisoners in an extremely poor psychological and physical state. Some detainees had become completely desperate and no longer wanted to live. The health of some sick prisoners had also deteriorated alarmingly, including diabetics who were on the verge of losing their sight because of inadequate medical care and neglect inside the prison.

They again complained about the repeated postponement of hearings and the long intervals between them, saying the situation had become catastrophic because a single judge was responsible for the cases of 83 detainees. They described this as a human and administrative situation in which it was impossible to achieve any degree of justice or maintain orderly legal proceedings.

“Our cases involving our freedom and our lives are being held up for repeated administrative reasons within the state’s judicial system,” they said in their memorandum. “At times because the judge is ill, and at other times because he is on annual leave, without another judge being appointed or a permanent judicial panel established to deal with our urgent affairs.”

General amnesty and equality

In their memorandum to al-Burhan, the detainees called for their release, citing previous general and political amnesties issued by the leadership that covered various parties and individuals, including Keikal, al-Nour Qubba, al-Savana, and Ibrahim Bakkal.

They argued that the principles of justice and constitutional equality necessarily required these humanitarian and political decisions to extend to all detainees who had spent long periods in prison without their cases being resolved, particularly given the exceptional circumstances and humanitarian threats facing the country.

The detainees called for an urgent meeting with the chairman of the Transitional Sovereignty Council, so that they could personally provide a full account of their suffering and explain the psychological and health conditions in which they were living inside Port Sudan prison, and place the entire case before him.

They renewed their call for a presidential general amnesty covering all detainees in related cases whose detention had been prolonged without a judicial conviction, or even referral to court, in line with similar sovereign decisions.

The detainees also called in their memorandum for immediate legal action, including urgent intervention by the chief justice to establish judicial panels and appoint dedicated judges in Port Sudan to clear what they described as the enormous backlog of “83 detainees before a single judge”.

If a comprehensive amnesty could not be granted, they called for strict deadlines to be imposed for concluding trials, for the failure of prosecution witnesses and complainants to attend to be dealt with under the law, and for urgent medical intervention in critical cases.

Sudanese Medical Group Accuses Rebel Group of Killing 27 People

By NOHA ELHENNAWY

12:03 PM EDT, August 25, 2026

CAIRO (AP) — Four children were among at least 27 people killed in the latest ethnic clashes in southern Sudan, a local medical group said on Tuesday.

The killings were carried out by the rebel Sudan People’s Liberation Movement (SPLM-N) in Qardud and Abu Hamama, areas inhabited by the Otoro tribe in South Kordofan, according to the Sudan Doctors Network, which monitors casualty numbers in the war-torn East African country.

Earlier this year, intense fighting erupted between forces linked to SPLM-N and the Otoro tribe, which is a minority group in the Nuba Mountains of South Kordofan.

The ethnic standoff, first instigated by land disputes, adds another layer to the country’s ongoing civil war which broke out in April 2023 between the army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF). The attacks have forced many people to flee toward Abu Hitan, a nearby village and Kadugli, the largest town in South Kordofan, said the doctors.

The Sudan Doctors Network said in a statement on Facebook that it stressed “that targeting unarmed civilians, including women and children, on ethnic grounds constitutes an explicit violation of international humanitarian law.”

The humanitarian group urged the international community to exert pressure on the SPLM-N leadership to halt attacks on civilians, noting that women were also among those wounded in the latest attacks.

The SPLM-N is a breakaway faction of the SPLM, the ruling party of neighboring South Sudan. Its leader Abdel Aziz al-Hilu, has aligned his fighters with the RSF and joined ranks with the RSF-led parallel government.

Liberia’s Ex-vice President Will Await Trial on Drug Trafficking and Other Charges in Prison

Liberian first lady Jewel Howard Taylor speaks to journalists at the ruling National Patriotic Party headquarters in the Liberian capital Monrovia Friday, July 11, 2003. (AP Photo/Ben Curtis, File)

By MARK MENGONFIA

3:08 PM EDT, August 25, 2026

MONROVIA, Liberia (AP) — Liberia’s former vice president was sent to prison on Tuesday to await trial on drug trafficking and other charges, after a court in the West African country denied her request to be released on humanitarian grounds for medical treatment.

Jewel Howard-Taylor’s lawyers asked the court for her to remain at a local hospital in Monrovia to receive treatment for a health emergency. She suffered an asthma attack and her blood pressure was high while in police custody after her arrest, according to local media reports.

Alongside three other foreign nationals charged in absentia, the former vice president and wife of former president, Charles Taylor, is facing multiple charges for drug trafficking, money laundering and other offenses as part of an investigation into an alleged transnational narcotics network. Howard-Taylor was vice president from 2018 to 2024.

She was arrested on Aug. 19 at Roberts International Airport while she was attempting to leave Liberia.

Her lawyers have rejected the allegations, saying they are politically motivated, but investigators say the case is supported by travel records, audio recordings, witness testimonies and evidence of her alleged association with members of the transnational cocaine trafficking network.

Last month, Liberian authorities seized and burned around 4.2 metric tons of cocaine with a street value estimated to be about $317 million, also implicating some senior police officials in the trafficking operation, which has been linked to her.

In recent years, West Africa has emerged as a key transit route for cocaine trafficked from South America to Europe, with smugglers taking advantage of porous borders and weak enforcement in parts of the region.

Pan-African News Wire

Wednesday, August 26, 2026

Tuesday, August 25, 2026

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Dr. Walter Rodney (1942-1980), Pan-African Historian