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Sudan: President Al-Bashir Orders Block on South Sudan Oil Flow

8 June 2013

Khartoum — The Sudanese president Omer Hassan al-Bashir said today he ordered oil minister Awad al-Jaz to block the pipeline carrying South Sudan's crude all the way to Red Sea coastal city of Port Sudan.

Bashir said this was in response to Juba's continued support to the Sudan Revolutionary Front (SRF) rebels fighting Khartoum on multiple fronts.

"O' Awad [oil minister] tomorrow direct oil companies to close the pipeline and after that let them [South Sudan] take it via Kenya or Djibouti or wherever they want to take it" the Sudanese president said at a rally at the inauguration of an electricity plant in Shil'ab area.

"The oil of South Sudan will not pass through Sudan ever again," Bashir added.

The Sudanese president said the decision was taken after thorough study to examine its pros and cons.

He revealed that Khartoum previously gave Juba a two weeks ultimatum to suspend its support to SRF after which Sudan made this move.

Bashir vowed never to allow South Sudan to use oil revenues to buy SRF rebels weapons and equipments used in fighting the Sudanese army.

"We gave the south a full cream state with services and money but they decided to bite the hand extended to them," he said.

He also called on youth to join military training camps to prepare for Jihad (holy war).

Following Sudan re-asserting control over Abu-Kershola in South Kordofan in late May, Bashir announced that they will no longer negotiate with SRF and warned Juba that they will shut down the oil pipelines if they do not cease backing insurgents.

If Sudan goes ahead with shutting the pipeline, it will be considered a heavy blow to last March's implementation matrix deal brokered by African Union mediation team.

In a separate events. Bashir's 2nd VP al-Haj Adam Youssef warned that Sudan will cancel all cooperation agreements signed with Juba unless South Sudan president Salva Kiir takes right decision to halt rebel support.

The neighbors, who fought one of Africa's longest civil wars, agreed in March to resume cross-border oil flows and end tensions plaguing them since the south seceded in 2011.

South Sudan has started since then to pipe oil to two treatment plants in Sudan to be readied for exports, the first time since the landlocked new nation shut down its production of 350,000 barrels a day in January 2012 in a row over export fees.