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The warring parties in the Sudanese war that started on 15 April 2023 are “not yet ready for peace”, the Catholic Bishop of the country’s El Obeid Diocese has said, inviting the leaders to go back to the table of dialogue.
Bishop Macram Max Gassis, the first Catholic Bishop of El Obeid Diocese in Sudan, has passed on in the U.S. after suffering poor health “for many months”. He was aged 84.
The Catholic Bishop of El-Obeid Diocese and section of the Clergy in the Sudanese Diocese are “safe” after rockets hit Church premises on April 20, including the main gate of Mary Queen of Africa Cathedral and the Priests’ residence, the Secretary General of the Sudan Catholic Bishops’ Conference (SCBC) has said.
Residents of Abyei Administrative Area (AAA), an area on the border between Sudan and South Sudan that has a “special administrative status”, are in dire need of humanitarian assistance, the Bishop of the Catholic Diocese of El Obeid that covers the region has said.
There is need for the international community to put pressure on the military in Sudan to show respect and value for human life, a Catholic Bishop in the country has said a day after the country’s army seized power in a coup.
The agreement to separate religion from the state after three decades of Islamic rule in Sudan is a matter that is still under discussion, according to a Catholic Prelate in the North-East African country.
The peace deal signed close to ten months ago between the government of Sudan and the rebel coalition of fighters that saw the two parties agree to a cessation of hostilities on all war fronts seems to be holding the country together despite some cases of tribal conflicts in the region of Darfur, a Bishop in the two-diocese nation has reported.
When the Bishops and heads of dioceses in Sudan and South Sudan met for their weeklong Annual Plenary Assembly in Juba that concluded October 30, they not only deliberated about the situation of their sister countries and delivered a message of hope but also elected new leaders for their umbrella body, the Sudan Catholic Bishops’ Conference (SCBC).
Just over two months since Sudan’s new transitional government took office, there is, on one hand, positive change with regard to the ability of citizens to express their views without fear of intimidation and torture, and on the other hand, a degree of stagnation with economic hardships still being felt across the Northeast African country, a Church leader has told ACI Africa.