The head of Sudan’s Sovereign Council and commander-in-chief of the Sudanese Armed Forces, General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, revealed that he has informed various foreign envoys that any solution that does not dismantle the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) and strip them of their weapons will be completely unacceptable, according to the Sudan Tribune.
اضافة اعلان
The newspaper quoted al-Burhan as saying, during a memorial ceremony for fighters of the Sudan Liberation Movement led by Minni Arko Minnawi, the governor of Darfur, that he delivered the same message to envoys from several countries, including the U.S. Senior Advisor for Africa, Massad Boulos, the Norwegian envoy, the U.K. special representative, and the envoy of the UN Secretary-General.
Al-Burhan stated: “Our position is non-negotiable. The RSF must withdraw from every area it occupies, assemble in designated locations, surrender its weapons, and allow displaced people to return to their homes. Only then can political transition talks begin.”
He stressed that the grave violations committed by the RSF—particularly in the city of El Fasher in North Darfur—have severely limited the government’s options for any settlement.
On Monday, al-Burhan received the personal envoy of the UN Secretary-General, Ramtane Lamamra, at his office in Port Sudan. During the meeting, he emphasized the need to restructure the Sudanese state on solid foundations, stressing that Khartoum “will accept no solution that does not dismantle the RSF and disarm it.”
Al-Burhan said the war has affected all Sudanese, pointing to what he described as “the unique suffering and tragedy in El Fasher.” He added that “the only solution in Sudan is the elimination of militias,” calling on every Sudanese capable of bearing arms to join the fight against the RSF.
Since the outbreak of the war in April 2023, the RSF has taken control of most of Darfur—except pockets in North Darfur in Tina and Kunu, and areas held by Abdel Wahid al-Nur’s faction of the Sudan Liberation Army—and large parts of Kordofan.
Documented reports have revealed that the RSF has committed atrocities in the areas under its control, including in Khartoum, Gezira, Sennar, Darfur, and West, South, and North Kordofan. These include genocide, ethnically motivated killings, mass rape, looting, infrastructure destruction, and the forced displacement of millions.
Sudan has witnessed multiple international, Arab, and African efforts to achieve a ceasefire, but none have produced a lasting agreement so far, amid escalating armed clashes between the Sudanese army and the RSF.
While the RSF announced that its forces had seized the headquarters of the “22nd Infantry Division” and taken full control of the city of Babanusa in West Kordofan, the Sudanese army declared advances in several towns in South Kordofan.
Fierce fighting has reignited across wide areas of South Kordofan in recent months. Diplomats say the stalemate between the army and the RSF has hindered humanitarian aid from reaching 25 million people in need.
Envoys now await an official response to the revised ceasefire proposal presented last week in Jeddah. However, al-Burhan’s remarks indicate that disarmament—not power-sharing—remains Khartoum’s top priority, according to the Sudan Tribune.
The war between the Sudanese national army and the rebel RSF has raged for more than two years, claiming tens of thousands of lives and causing the world’s largest humanitarian crisis. The United States has accused the RSF of committing genocide.
