Sudan army chief: ‘Revolution can be restored’
Sudan Armed Forces leader tells Al Jazeera truce talks with Rapid Support Forces chief are impossible and wants the group named a ‘terrorist’ organisation.
Video Duration 01 minutes 25 seconds01:25
Source: By Mike Hanna
Published On 23 Sep 202323 Sep 2023
As Sudan’s deadly conflict nears six months, the country’s de facto leader, General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, has admitted the fighting could lead to a wider humanitarian disaster in the region.
The war between his army and its rival Rapid Support Forces (RSF) broke out in mid-April over plans to integrate the paramilitary group, four years after former longtime ruler Omar al-Bashir was deposed in a popular uprising.
Ceasefire talks to end the conflict have failed to hold, with both sides accusing the other of violations. But al-Burhan said the United States and Saudi Arabia-brokered negotiations in Jeddah could still succeed.
Speaking to Al Jazeera in New York on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly, the military leader voiced his desire for a peaceful resolution to end fighting that has killed thousands and displaced millions of civilians.
Al Jazeera: During your speech to the UN General Assembly, you called on a number of occasions for the Rapid Support Forces to be declared a terrorist entity. How important is this to resolve the situation in your country?
Abdel Fattah al-Burhan: Of course, what the Rapid Support Forces has done to the Sudanese people again and again qualifies them as terrorists and they should be punished. What those gangs committed is, in fact, a crime against humanity. And I believe that classifying them as a terrorist organisation will limit their power and will limit sympathy for them.
Al Jazeera: You’ve also warned this fighting could spread over borders and it is not just a localised war. The danger of this is a massive humanitarian disaster throughout the whole region, not just in Sudan. Is it not?
Al-Burhan: This conflict will spill into [neighbouring] countries and will not be confined to Sudan. The majority of [RSF] fighters come from neighbouring countries. Yes, most certainly. This may spill into other countries and may threaten security and safety in the region and in the world.
Al Jazeera: RSF leader Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo put out a message saying he is ready for a ceasefire and he wants to negotiate. Do you believe negotiation is still possible?
Al-Burhan: It’s not possible, to be honest. He’s the one who has continued to fight in el-Geneina, other cities, and near the headquarters of our military. That is why in Jeddah when we reached some understanding, he did not commit himself to those understandings.