Sudan’s dialogue without cease-fire ‘useless’: Army chief

Sudan’s army, RSF paramilitary group hold face-to-face talks in Saudi Arabia

KHARTOUM, Sudan

Sudan’s army chief Gen. Abdel Fattah al-Burhan said that political dialogue without achieving a cease-fire is “useless.”

“There is no benefit in negotiations with the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) if they do not leave residential neighborhoods and end military presence in the capital,” al-Burhan told Egypt’s Al-Qahera News channel.

More than 550 people have been killed and thousands injured in fighting between the army and the RSF paramilitary group since April 15, according to Sudan’s Health Ministry.

The two military rivals began their first face-to-face talks in Saudi Arabia on Saturday, in an effort to end their conflict.

Al-Burhan said the RSF don’t have any presence in military sites in Sudan. “Their presence is only limited to residential neighborhoods and service facilities,” he added.

The army chief said that the situation is stable in all parts of Sudan except the capital Khartoum.

“The army is close to ending the RSF presence in Khartoum,” al-Burhan said.

“A peaceful solution is the optimal way to solve the political crisis in the country,” he added.

A disagreement had been fomenting in recent months between the two sides over the integration of the RSF into the armed forces — a key condition of Sudan’s transition agreement with political groups.

Sudan has been without a functioning government since fall 2021, when the military dismissed Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok’s transitional government and declared a state of emergency in a move decried by political forces as a “coup.”

The transitional period, which started in August 2019 after the ouster of President Omar al-Bashir, was scheduled to end with elections in early 2024.