Originally posted by the Voice of America.
Voice of America content is produced by the Voice of America,
a United States federal government-sponsored entity, and is in
the public domain.


Meeting of Sudanese Leader, Netanyahu Stirs Debate in Sudan

Associated Press

   CAIRO - A surprise meeting between Sudan's leader and Israeli Prime
   Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stirred controversy in Sudan on Tuesday,
   with the government saying it wasn't notified ahead of time and critics
   lambasting the talks on social media.

   Others said the meeting would improve Sudan's standing with the United
   States and help Khartoum shed its pariah image. For Israel, it was a
   major diplomatic breakthrough with an Arab African state, two days
   after the Arab League rejected President Donald Trump's Mideast plan.

   The Uganda meeting between Gen. Abdel-Fattah Burhan, the head of
   Sudan's transitional government, and Netanyahu was kept secret but
   grabbed headlines late Monday when the Israeli leader announced the two
   had began talks on normalizing relations between their countries.

   Sudan is desperate to lift sanctions linked to its listing by the U.S.
   as a state sponsor of terror - a key step toward ending its isolation
   and rebuilding the economy after the popular uprising last year that
   toppled the country's autocrat Omar al-Bashir and installed the joint
   civilian-military sovereign council, headed by Burhan.

   But Khartoum is also a longtime member of the Arab League and joined
   other members in rejecting Trump's plan at a meeting in Cairo on
   Saturday. The U.S. plan, heavily in favor of Israel, would grant the
   Palestinians limited self-rule in parts of the occupied West Bank,
   while allowing Israel to annex all its settlements there and keep
   nearly all of east Jerusalem.

   From Uganda, Netanyahu tweeted: "History!'' while his office said the
   meeting with Burhan came at the invitation of Uganda. The statement
   said Netanyahu ``believes that Sudan is moving in a new and positive
   direction"- an apparent reference to a possible removal from the terror
   list.

   "We agreed to begin cooperation that will lead to normalization of
   relations between the two countries,'' Netanyahu said.

.