Sudanese leader says no talks, ceasefire until paramilitary forces defeated

PORT SUDAN | Xinhua | Chairman of Sudan’s Transitional Sovereign Council Abdel Fattah Al-Burhan on Wednesday said there would be no negotiations or ceasefire until the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) is defeated.

Al-Burhan, also the general commander of the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF), made the remarks when addressing an army force in the River Nile state in northern Sudan, the sovereign council said in a statement.

“There will be no negotiations, no peace, and no ceasefire except after defeating this rebellion… so this country can live in peace,” Al-Burhan said.

Al-Burhan’s remarks came a day after violent battles between the SAF and the RSF in North Kordofan state.

On Tuesday, the SAF announced on its Facebook page that the army’s Fifth Infantry Division achieved victories in El Obeid, the capital city of North Kordofan state.

However, the RSF on Wednesday said in a statement that it had repelled an attack by the SAF in North Kordofan state.

A slew of peace initiatives have been put forward to end the armed conflict in Sudan, including by the African Union, the Intergovernmental Authority on Development, an East African bloc, Saudi Arabia, and the United States, but all have so far failed.

According to the UN, half of Sudan’s population — some 25 million people — need humanitarian assistance and protection, with nearly 18 million people facing acute food insecurity.

Since the conflict between the SAF and the RSF broke out on April 15, 2023, around 15,000 fatalities have been recorded, while the number of people displaced inside and outside of Sudan has reached 8.2 million, according to recent estimates by the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. ■