Omar al-Bashir
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| Omar Hasan Ahmad al-Bashir عمر حسن احمد البشير |
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| Incumbent | |
| Assumed office 30 June 1989 |
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| Vice President | Salva Kiir Mayar |
| Preceded by | Ahmad al-Mirghani |
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| Born | 1 January 1944 Hosh Bannaga, Sudan |
| Political party | NyP |
| Spouse | Fatma Khalid |
| Religion | Islam |
Field Marshal Omar Hasan Ahmad al-Bashir (Arabic: عمر حسن احمد البشير, born January 1, 1944) is the President of Sudan.
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[edit] Background
Al-Bashir was born in the tiny village of Hoshe Bannaga in Sudan, where he received his primary education. His family later moved to Khartoum, where he completed his secondary education. Al-Bashir joined the Sudanese Army at a young age and studied at a military academy in Cairo. He quickly rose through the ranks and became a paratrooper. Later, al-Bashir served with the Egyptian Army when it went to war with Israel in 1973. He is a native speaker of the Arabic language.
[edit] Military career
When he returned to the Sudan, al-Bashir was put in charge of military operations against the Sudan People's Liberation Army in the southern half of the country. Then a colonel, in 1989 al-Bashir led a group of army officers in ousting the unstable coalition government of Prime Minister Sadeq al-Mahdi. Under al-Bashir's leadership, the new military government suspended political parties, and indroduced an Islamic legal code on the national level. He then became Chairman of the Revolutionary Command Council for National Salvation (a newly established body with legislative and executive powers for what was described as a transitional period), and assumed the posts of chief of state, prime minister, chief of the armed forces, and minister of defense.
[edit] Governance
Al-Bashir subsequently allied himself with Hassan al-Turabi, leader of the National Islamic Front.
On October 16, 1993, al-Bashir's powers increased when he was appointed president of the country, after which time the Revolutionary Command Council for National Salvation was dissolved. The executive and legislative powers of the council were subsequently given to al-Bashir. He was later elected president (with a five year term) in the 1996 national election. In 1998, al-Bashir and the Presidential Committee put into effect a new constitution. In 1999, al-Bashir and the Parliament made a law which allowed limited political associations in opposition to al-Bashir and his supporters to be formed, although these groups failed to gain any significant access to governmental power. On December 12, 1999, al-Bashir brought troops and tanks against parliament and ousted Hassan al-Turabi, the speaker of parliament, in a palace coup.[1]
[edit] International arena
According to the government of Sudan, al-Bashir had offered the United States the arrest and extradition of Osama bin Laden and detailed intelligence data earlier that year and that the Clinton administration was not receptive to the idea, though United States officials deny that any such offer was ever made.[citation needed] In 1998, the U.S. bombed al-Shifa pharmaceutical factory, a factory in Sudan that was allegedly producing chemical weapons for bin Laden, but many doubt if the factory was making such devices at the time of the attack, since the U.S. has failed to provide any evidence or to allow an independent committee to verify these claims.[citation needed] Sudan was subsequently one of the seven nations put on the U.S. State Department’s list of countries that sponsor international terrorism, but al-Bashir has fiercely denied that Sudan aids or has any connections with terrorist groups.[citation needed] Al-Bashir subsequently spoke out against the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks and pressured Saddam Hussein to let weapons inspectors back into Iraq in 2002.[citation needed] Despite al-Bashir’s efforts, Sudan still remains carefully monitored in regard to terrorist activity within its borders. As recently as April 2004, U.S. President George W. Bush has called for al-Bashir to step up his efforts in combating terrorism.[citation needed]
[edit] Civil war
Sudan is perhaps best known internationally for the civil war that raged between the northern and southern halves of the country for over 19 years. The war resulted in millions of southerners being displaced, starved, and deprived of education and health care. Because of these actions, various international sanctions were placed on Sudan. International pressure intensified in 2001, however, and leaders from the United Nations called for al-Bashir to make efforts to end the conflict and allow humanitarian and international workers to deliver relief to the southern regions of Sudan. Much progress was made throughout 2003, and in early 2004 al-Bashir agreed to grant autonomy to the south for six years, split the country’s oil revenues with the southern provinces, and allow the southerners to vote in a referendum of independence at the end of the six year period. Al-Bashir has also made statements discouraging southerners to support independence.
[edit] Darfur
As the conflict in the south of Sudan began to die down, a new one started in the western province of Darfur in early 2003.
The United States Government claimed in September 2004 "that genocide has been committed in Darfur and that the Government of Sudan and the Janjaweed bear responsibility and that genocide may still be occurring."[2] Al-Bashir declared that the government had squashed the rebellion in February 2004, but rebels still operate within the region and the death toll continues to rise. The conflict continues despite a recent ceasefire agreement. On June 29, 2004, U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell met with al-Bashir in Sudan and urged him to make peace with the rebels, end the crisis, and lift restrictions on the delivery of humanitarian aid to Darfur. Kofi Annan met with al-Bashir three days later and demanded that he disarm the Janjaweed.
In September 2006, attending the UN General Assembly in New York, al-Bashir said that Sudan wants the African Union to stay in Darfur until peace is re-established. Shortly afterwards the AU peace and United Nations Security Council announced that its 7,000 troops would remain until December 31, 2006.
A high-level technical consultation was held in Addis Ababa on 11-12 June 2007, pursuant to the 4 June 2007 letters of the Secretary-General and the Chairperson of the African Union Commission addressed to President Omar Al-Bashir and further discussions among them. The technical consultations were attended by delegations from the Government of Sudan, the African Union and the United Nations.
[edit] See also
- List of national leaders
- History of Sudan
- Darfur conflict
- Military of Sudan
- Politics of Sudan
- Genocide
- Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD-IV), 2008.
| Persondata | |
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| NAME | Bashir, Omar Hasan Ahmad al- |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | عمر حسن احمد البشير (Arabic) |
| SHORT DESCRIPTION | Sudanese president |
| DATE OF BIRTH | January 1, 1944 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Hosh Bannaga, Northern State, Sudan |
| DATE OF DEATH | living |
| PLACE OF DEATH | |
[edit] References
- ^ Stefano Bellucci, "Islam and Democracy: The 1999 Palace Coup," Middle East Policy 7,no. 3 (June 2000):168
- ^ U.S. Calls Killings In Sudan Genocide
[edit] External links
- "Sudanese President Threaten Wars," Sudan Inside, November 18, 2007.
- "A Cautious Welcome for Sudan's New Government," by Michael Johns, Heritage Foundation Executive Memorandum #245, July 28, 1989.
| Political offices | ||
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| Preceded by Ahmad al-Mirghani |
President of Sudan 1989 – present |
Incumbent |
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