Army, RSF nominating representatives to kick off talks: Official

The Sudanese Armed Forces and the Rapid Support Force nominated representatives to hold talks between the two sides, a high-ranking official in the Sudanese foreign ministry said on Saturday.

The official revealed that the nominees for representation in the talks have been selected pending approval, adding that South Sudan is likely to host the talks between the two sides.

There are issues when it comes to traveling to Juba, the capital of South Sudan, he explained, because the ceasefire has not been enforced, making air travel impossible for either side.

Concurrently, the President of the Sudanese Sovereignty Council and Commander-in-Chief of the Sudanese Armed Forces, Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, underlined the military’s commitment to the political process and the transition of power to a civilian government.

Al-Burhan said that the Sudanese military would not serve as a lever that gives any entity, group or party the ability to seize power.

Furthermore, he stressed that the Sudanese Armed Forces are committed to the political process that culminates in the establishment of a civilian authority.

These statements appear to have come as an indirect response to repeated allegations by Rapid Support Force commander Mohammad Hamdan Dagalo (Hemedti) about al-Burhan’s attempt to seize power and hinder the handover of power to a civilian government. Are.

Fighting between Sudan’s army and paramilitary forces entered its third week on Saturday fresh ceasefireAs the warplanes took off on bombing sorties, intense anti-aircraft fire came down on Khartoum.

Sudan’s armed forces agreed to extend the ceasefire, which was proposed for an additional 72 hours, effective from the expiration date of the current ceasefire.

on the last day of the fourth armistice, Clashes broke out in several places in Khartoum And plumes of smoke rose over the area around the presidential palace in Khartoum, coinciding with the flight of warplanes.

Al-Burhan and Dagalo have agreed to several fragile ceasefires since the start of the fighting, with each side accusing the other of violating them.

The most recent three-day ceasefire took place on Thursday, after the United States, Saudi Arabia, the African Union and the United Nations mediated to achieve a long-lasting ceasefire.

As fighting on the ground intensified, the two rival generals took aim at each other in the media, with al-Burhan identifying the RSF as a militia aimed at “Sudan” in an interview for a US-based TV channel. to destroy”. Alhurra,

He also said that “mercenaries” were coming across the border from Chad, the Central African Republic and Niger to fuel the chaos.

In response, Dagalo criticized the army chief in an interview BBCsaying that he was “not trustworthy” and a “traitor”.

At least 512 people have been killed and 4,193 injured in these clashes so far, according to the Ministry of Health, with the death toll expected to be much higher.

According to the United Nations, some 75,000 people have been internally displaced as a result of fighting in Khartoum, Blue Nile and North Kordofan states as well as the western region of Darfur.