Over the past few days, a number of social media platforms, writers and activists affiliated with the Islamic Movement have launched an organised campaign against the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The Sudanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs tried to avoid the crisis and tensions that occurred as a result of this media campaign, and issued a statement announcing its rejection of what it described as severe insults to the Saudi leadership and language that does not resemble what the Sudanese people are known for.
The official position:
The Sudanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs said it ‘followed writings and comments by Sudanese columnists and activists in social media that dealt with Sudanese-Saudi relations, which does not reflect the true position of the government and people towards the leadership and people of the Kingdom, and language that does not resemble the politeness and respect of the Sudanese people for their brothers, especially Their Highnesses, Excellencies, Kings, Emirs and leaders of brotherly countries.
Obstruction of ending the war:
For his part, journalist and political analyst Mohamed Saeed told Rhino that the motives of the campaign to attack Saudi Arabia are an attempt to demolish the temple for everyone, as Saudi Arabia represents the last card to torpedo the Jeddah Platform, which seeks to stop the war with Saudi-American efforts.
The journalist and political analyst Taher al-Mutasem considered that the Jeddah platform is the one concerned with this attack, to cut off the road to stopping the war with this irresponsible discourse and the shortsightedness of those leading this attack, which found condemnation and condemnation from the Sudanese themselves. Al-Mutasem pointed out in an interview with Rhino that the statement of the Sudanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued two days ago and denounced and condemned writers affiliated with the press and media in dealing with the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia was very clear, especially those who hide behind a screen and attack the Kingdom in an obscene manner.
He said: (This matter brings us back to the 1990s and what Omdurman Radio used to present through presenter ‘Younis Mahmoud’ in the morning talk, which cursed neighboring countries, especially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, and made false accusations that proved not to be serious).
He pointed out that the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia had helped to remove the ousted president when the South African prosecution issued a decision to arrest him and hand him over to the International Criminal Court, and said that the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, since the beginning of the war, made great efforts to establish the Jeddah Platform, and made all possible efforts to prevent the country from sliding to what it has reached now. However, like all those who want the war to continue and like those who want to return to the seats of power from those affiliated with the former regime, they used the media to launch accusations against the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
Al-Moatasem believes that what the former regime’s fronts are doing harms the national security of Sudan itself, given the border calculations and the huge numbers of Sudanese people who have been living in Saudi Arabia for many years, in addition to those who go on pilgrimages and seasons of Hajj and Umrah, and who find nothing but welcome, hospitality and morality from the Kingdom.
Who are they?
The question of who is behind the war’s propaganda and media marketing, and in whose favor, has remained a fundamental question in search of answers. According to the facts, since before the outbreak of the war, Islamist-affiliated groups began to threaten the media and make accusations, before these threats were translated into direct practices and violations in Favour of the remnants of the ousted regime, the only beneficiary of the continuation of the war in Sudan.
According to media reports attributed to the leaders of political and civil forces rejecting the war in Sudan, the rooms went crazy after the announcement of the agreement between Abdel Rahim and Kobashi in Manama, which the Islamists could not hide their anger at, and it was clear that media rooms working in favour of the Islamists’ discourse adopted the accusation that anyone who calls for stopping the war is a traitor.
The names of Abdulmajid Abdulhamid, Muzammil Abu al-Qasim, Osama Abdulmajid, Aisha al-Majidi, Rashan Oshi, Adel al-Baz, Khalid al-Esser, Mohammed Mohammed Khair, Aboud Abdulrahim, Um Waddah, Suheir Abdulrahim, Dalia Elias, Attaf Abdulwahab, and al-Tahir Sati emerged as media professionals who support the war and its continuation.
He noted that the Islamist media groups calling for the war and its continuation were not limited only to journalists, as media rooms were formed on social media platforms, including personalities dedicated to political propaganda for the war, adopting Islamist positions and attacking civil and political forces seeking to stop the war and end the suffering of the Sudanese people. These groups were headed by (Mohamed Mahmoud al-Samani, Amr Saleh Yas, Wael Salama, Ahmed Shumukh, Bassiouni Kamel Bassiouni, and Abdulrahman Amseib), and their funding and coordination were supervised by Colonel (Ibrahim al-Houri, journalist Mohamed al-Mabruk, journalist Talal Ismail, and Yussef).
The political analyst revealed that the formation of these media rooms began in September 2022 under the supervision of military intelligence, and included Mohammed al-Mabrouk, al-Tahir Satti, Rashan Oshi, Aisha al-Majdi, Mohammed Abdul Qader, Mohammed al-Mahi al-Ansari, ‘a member of Mubarak al-Fadil’s party,’ and his office manager ‘Mohammed Diaa al-Din Bilal, Attaf al-Tom Rahmtallah, Talal Ismail, Youssef Amara Abu Sun, Khaled al-Aysar, Hussein Malasi, Bakri al-Madani, Ammar Sheila, ‘Director of Blue Nile TV’, and Majdi Abdel Aziz), and activists Ahmed Shamoukh and Wael Salama were added to the room days before the war.
He added: ‘The media room was equipped to lead media campaigns against the Framework Political Agreement signed on 5 December 2022, and to call for the army to take overpower.’ These rooms expanded rapidly during the war.
