ICC Note: On July 12, 2017, the United States will have to decide whether or not to lift sanctions on Sudan. These sanctions, first set in place in 1997 due to Sudan’s tie with terrorist groups, have continued due to their egregious Human Rights record. They were temporarily lifted on January 12, 2017, when President Obama gave Sudan six months to work on five areas. This “five track” plan avoids some of the most grievous of Sudan’s religious violations however. They are currently ranked as number five on the World Watch List, a list of the 50 worst countries for Christians, due to their open religious persecution of minorities. They are also listed as a Country of Particular Concern by the United States for these same violations. We hope that these sanctions will not be lifted until Sudan guarantees the religious freedom for all of their people.
07/10/2017 Sudan (DailyMail)- Hopes are running high in Sudan that US President Donald Trump will decide this week to lift Washington’s sanctions on Khartoum, despite rights groups calling for the decades-old embargo to be maintained.
“The time is right for permanently lifting the sanctions on Sudan,” senior Sudanese foreign ministry official Abdelghani Elnaim told AFP ahead of the end of a review period on Wednesday.
“We are counting on President Trump to take this courageous decision that will make not just the people of Sudan, but all of Africa, happy.”
Washington imposed a complex set of economic sanctions on Sudan in 1997 for its alleged backing of Islamist militant groups. Al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden, who was killed in a US commando raid in Pakistan in 2011, was based in Khartoum from 1992 to 1996.
Washington also justified the embargo with accusations of scorched-earth tactics by Khartoum against ethnic minority rebels in war-torn Darfur.
Barack Obama eased the sanctions before leaving office in an attempt to improve ties with Sudan whose leader President Omar al-Bashir is accused of genocide charges related to the conflict in Darfur.
However, he made the permanent lifting of sanctions dependent on Khartoum’s progress in five areas of concern during the six-month review period.
