A Joint US-French-Israeli Scheme to Overthrow Omar al-Bashir

Under criticism for neglecting to shape an effective strategy for Sudan and its appalling abuses in Darfur, the Obama administration has named Scott Gration special envoy to Khartoum.

Thursday July 30, Gration will have an opportunity to lay out administration thinking and plans to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.

But a comprehensive plan is already in the works.

DEBKA-Net-Weekly's African intelligence sources reveal that France's foreign intelligence service, the Direction Generale de la Securite Exterieure – DGSE, the American CIA and the Israeli Mossad are collaborating in a strategy for breaking Sudan up into three separate and independent states with loose federal ties.

A Muslim Sudan would rule central and northern Sudan, the State of Darfur would rise in the west and a Christian state in southern Sudan would command the country's rich oil resources and the Blue Nile's headwaters.

Overarching this plan is the goal to overthrow Gen. Omar al-Bashir and his radical Islamist regime.

This would automatically curb Tehran's drive to establish Revolutionary Guards, Navy and Intelligence bases in Sudan and make the country its forward operational springboard for subversive action in the Red Sea and Horn of African regions. Iran's smuggling infrastructure for running weapons to its rogue surrogates could then be shut down in Sudanese Red Sea ports, curtailing a smuggling system which is rated by US and Israeli intelligence as one of the greatest destabilizing elements in the region.

Orchestrated from Chad and Djibouti

The CIA, Mossad and DGSE have set up two centers out of which they are orchestrating their Sudan scheme: an operational base in Chad and a general headquarters at Djibouti for coordinating the activities of the three clandestine services.

The Chad base is staffed with French and Israeli agents who carry out covert operations in southern Sudan and Darfur. They are working hand in glove with the forces of Wahid Muhammad Nour, head of the Darfur Liberation Front. According to some sources in Khartoum, Nour recently visited Israel as the secret guest of the Mossad, and so did some of his top lieutenants, who came to sign agreements for the supply of Israeli weapons and intelligence assistance to the Darfur fighters.

In southern Sudan, the Israelis are working with the loyalists of South Sudan's leader Salva Kiir, who is also vice president of the country.

According to the same African sources, large deliveries of Israeli weapons, including tanks, helicopters and artillery, are making their way to the southern Sudanese forces as they gear up for a possible renewal of their war against the regime in Khartoum. Before this happens, the US, France and Israel want Kiir's supporters to take part in a national referendum in May 2011 and vote for secession from the Sudanese Republic. By then, they will have the military resources they need to back up a declaration of independence and fend off Bashir's army.

Sudan's opposition leader Khalil Ibrahim is also counted on to play ball in establishing a three-state federation once Omar al-Bashir and his henchmen are out of the way.

The three Western partners warned the ruler of neighboring Eritrea, Isaias Afewerki, to keep his meddling hands off Sudan, DEBKA-Net-Weekly intelligence sources report. Afeweki actively backs the al-Shabaab rebel movement affiliated with both Iran and al Qaeda which is fighting in Somalia.

He was also warned off helping the Palestinian Islamist Hamas in Gaza.

The warning reached him through intelligence channels after Paris was tipped off that Eritrean agents in Mogadishu were involved in the abduction of two French DGES agents from their hotel on Tuesday July 28 and that they were turned over to the Hizbullah Islam and al-Shabaab extremists.