EMBASSY CAIRO DELIVERS DEMARCHE ON GOVERNMENT OF

C O N F I D E N T I A L CAIRO 000404

SIPDIS

DEPARTMENT FOR NEA/ELA, AF/SPG

E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/08/2019
TAGS: PREL KPKO SU EG
SUBJECT: EMBASSY CAIRO DELIVERS DEMARCHE ON GOVERNMENT OF
SUDAN DECISION TO EXPEL NGOS

REF: STATE 21511

Classified By: Minister Counselor for Economic and Political Affairs
William R. Stewart for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d).


1. (C) Post delivered reftel demarche on the Government of
Sudan's (GOS) decision to expel NGOs to Hisham Youssef, Chief
of Staff of the Arab League, and to Ahmed Abu Zeid, Egyptian
MFA Cabinet Advisor on African Affairs on March 8. Youssef
told us that the Arab League (AL) shares our concerns about
the expulsion of the NGOs from Darfur. He said that AL SYG
Moussa raised the issue in discussions with Sudanese
President Bashir on March 7 in Khartoum. Youssef said that
based on Moussa's conversation, the GOS decided to give the
NGOs three additional days to leave the country. According
to Youssef, the GOS's position was that the NGOs had violated
their mandate by "passing information" (NFI) to the ICC,
which the GOS said is unacceptable. However, Youssef said
that the AL was continuing to negotiate for more time for the
NGOs in hopes that the situation could be resolved.


2. (C) In a separate meeting, Abu Zeid agreed that the
decision to expel the NGOs "sends the wrong message." He
opined that the GOS acted out of "revenge," but could not
target the foreign diplomatic presence or the United Nations.
Hence, it targeted the NGOs. He told us that the Government
of Egypt was already considering how to convey a similar
message to Khartoum regarding the counterproductive nature of
expelling the NGOs. He said that he would pass the USG
message to FM Aboul Gheit.
SCOBEY