*UPDATE* – It seems the organizations “expelled” had not been operational in Sudan since 2008 anyway, so this is not the concern that the headline in the report below suggests in that no one currently serving the Darfur population has  been expelled at all.(NB – The Xinhua report claimed to have been a press release from Relief Web. Pretty bad press release I’d say . . . no wonder link has now disappeared)

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Ok, so commitment not to blog necessarily broken by report via Xinhua (link seems now not to work so am posting full text below) that Sudan has expelled 26 aid organizations from Darfur, allegedly for violating their mandates.They have a month to get out. Will post again once I have more information . . .

Sudan expels 26 foreign organizations from Darfur

Source: Xinhua News Agency

Date: 21 Jan 2010
KHARTOUM, Jan. 21 (Xinhua) — The Sudanese authorities said on Thursday it has decided to expel 26 foreign organizations working in the western Sudanese region of Darfur in the humanitarian field for violating their mandates.

The Sudanese Commission for the Humanitarian Assistance said in a statement that the 26 foreign organizations violated the Sudanese laws on the mandates of the humanitarian organizations, adding that they had been ordered to leave the country within one month.

“The decision was taken according to the 11th item of the 2006 law organizing the humanitarian works in Sudan,” the statement said, without elaborating what behaviors of these organizations incurred the banishing.

It noted that the government took this decision after a technical and assessment committee responsible for monitoring operations of the humanitarian organizations working inside Sudan found out that these organization had run counter to the law.

“These organizations have been given one month of grace in order to fit their positions and liquidate their banking accounts before leaving the country,” the statement said.

The surprising step came as the country has started a prelude of general elections scheduled for April this year.

Last week, the incumbent President Omar al-Bashir was nominated by the ruling National Congress Party and some 20 other parties as their candidate to run for the presidency in the upcoming elections.

On the other hand, the Sudanese government and Darfur rebel groups will resume their peace talks in the Qatari capital Doha on Sunday, which international community hopes leads to a peace deal before the general elections.

It was not the first time for the Sudanese government to expel foreign humanitarian organizations.

Hours following the International Criminal Court (ICC) issued an arrest warrant against al-Bashir in March last year, Khartoum ordered some 10 foreign relief organizations to immediately leave this African country, angering some Western governments.

The Sudanese government accused these groups of transporting witnesses and fabricated information for The Hague-based ICC.