Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi will lead two emergency summits with other African leaders on Tuesday to address events in Sudan and Libya.
According to a statement from the presidency, the leaders will focus on “the evolution of the situation in Sudan” where protests continue after the military toppled president Omar al-Bashir.
They will also seek to “stem the current crisis” in Libya, where commander Khalifa Haftar is leading an offensive on Tripoli, Egypt’s presidency said in a statement.
Sisi who is the current Chairman of the African Union will receive Chadian president Idriss Deby, Rwanda’s head of state Paul Kagame, Congo’s Denis Sassou-Nguesso, Somalia’s Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed and South Africa’s Cyril Ramaphosa as well as Djibouti’s leader, Ismail Omar Guelleh.
AU’s position on Sudan
For Sudan, the objective “is to discuss…the most appropriate ways to address the evolution of the situation and to contribute to stability and peace”, Egypt’s presidency said.
For Libya the focus will be on “relaunching a political process…(and) the elimination of terrorism”, the statement added.
The AU on 15 April threatened to suspend Sudan if the military does not hand over power within 15 days of that date to a civilian authority.
President of the African Union commission Moussa Faki is also expected to participate in the discussions, along with officials from Ethiopia, South Sudan, Uganda, Kenya and Nigeria.
Seeking a political solution in Libya
Another summit on Libya, which will bring together the leaders of Rwanda, South Africa and the Congo with Sisi, will focus on “relaunching a political process…(and) the elimination of terrorism”, Egypt’s presidency said.
Strongman Haftar’s self-styled Libyan National Army launched an offensive against Tripoli, the seat of the internationally recognised Government of National Accord, on April 4.
Egypt is a strong ally of Haftar, who is also backed by the UAE and — according to the White House — was consulted by US President Donald Trump in a phone call last week.
The planned summits are the first to be convened by African leaders on the current crises in Sudan and Libya.
