The governor of the Central bank said in a statement that "only a few Sudanese individuals and entities remain under US sanctions for their links to the conflict in Darfur" KHARTOUM: Sudan"s central bank announced Wednesday that the United States had informed Khartoum it was lifting sanctions on 157 Sudanese companies, in line with a policy shift by Washington in late 2017. Central bank governor Badreddine Abdelrahim said in a statement that "only a few Sudanese individuals and entities remain under US sanctions for their links to the conflict in Darfur", a region hit by a protracted conflict that began in 2003. Washington announced an end to its 20-year-old trade embargo against Sudan in October 2017, but retained the country on its state sponsors of terror list.