US Congress Reinstates Sudan’s Sovereign Immunity
The United States passed legislation that has reinstated Sudan’s sovereign immunity. The removal last week by the US State Department of Sudan’s designation as a state sponsor of terrorism allowed Monday’s legislation, which had been linked to the government’s $892 billion coronavirus aid package, to go forward.
The legislation contains an exemption that allows lawsuits filed by the families of victims of the 9/11 attacks currently making their way through US courts to go forward. Sudan had hosted Osama bin Laden, the head of the al-Qaida radical Islamic organization that carried out the attacks. The US designated Sudan a state sponsor of terrorism nearly three decades ago over former President Omar al-Bashir’s support of al-Qaida and other terror groups such as Hamas and Hezbollah.
The reinstitution of Sudan’s sovereign immunity will open the country up to foreign investors, and to receiving international aid. The legislation passed on Monday includes $700 million in economic assistance for Sudan and $100 million for humanitarian assistance from USAID. In addition, Sudan will receive $120 million for restructuring its debt and $110 million for debt relief, according to Al Jazeera.
The removal of the state terrorism designation came days after the US announced it had brokered a normalization agreement between Sudan and Israel.
