Sudan paramilitary chief vows to return after being pushed out of Khartoum

Cairo — The leader of Sudan’s paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, said on Sunday that his war against the army was not over and his forces would return to Khartoum despite being largely driven out of the capital.

It was Dagalo’s first comment since the RSF were pushed back from most parts of Khartoum last week by the army in the latest development in Sudan’s devastating two-year-old war.

Dagalo, also known as Hemedti, conceded in an audio message on Telegram that his forces had left the capital last week as the army consolidated its gains.

“It’s true that in the past few days there was a withdrawal by forces [from Khartoum] to reposition in Omdurman. This was a tactical decision made by the leadership. It was a collective decision,” Dagalo said.

However, he vowed to return to Khartoum “stronger, more powerful and victorious”.

His comments came as the army continued to consolidate, taking control on Saturday of a major market in Omdurman, Khartoum’s twin city, which had previously been used by the RSF to launch attacks.

The army already controlled most of Omdurman, home to two big military bases. It appears intent on securing the entire capital area, which is made up of the three cities of Khartoum, Omdurman and Bahri, divided by branches of the River Nile. The RSF still hold some territory in Omdurman.

On Saturday, Sudanese army chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan ruled out any reconciliation with the RSF, vowing to crush it.

The war is the result of a power struggle between the army and the RSF ahead of a planned transition to civilian rule.

The fighting has ruined much of Khartoum, uprooted more than 12-million Sudanese from their homes, and left about half of the 50-million population suffering acute hunger.

Overall deaths are hard to estimate, but a study published last year said the toll may have reached 61,000 in Khartoum state alone in the first 14 months of the conflict.

Army chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan ruled out any reconciliation with the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces in a video statement on Saturday in which he vowed to crush the group.

“We will neither forgive, nor compromise, nor negotiate,” he said, reaffirming the military’s commitment to restoring national unity and stability.

Burhan also said fighters who “repent to the truth” could still be amnestied if they lay down their arms, particularly those who are in rebel-held areas.

Earlier on Saturday, the army said it had taken control of a major market in Khartoum’s twin city of Omdurman, which had previously been used by the RSF to launch attacks during a devastating two-year-old war.

The Sudanese army has also declared victory over the RSF in Khartoum, claiming control of most parts of the capital.

The conflict between the army and the RSF has unleashed waves of ethnic violence, creating what the UN calls the world’s worst humanitarian crisis and plunged several areas into famine.

The army said in a statement that its forces were now in control of the market in western Omdurman, Souq Libya, having seized weapons and equipment left behind by the RSF when they fled.

Souq Libya is one of the largest and most important commercial hubs in Sudan.

The army already controlled most of Omdurman, home to two big military bases. It appears intent on securing control of the entire capital area, which is made up of the three cities of Khartoum, Omdurman and Bahri, divided by branches of the River Nile.

The RSF has not commented on the army’s advance in Omdurman, where the paramilitary forces still hold some territory.

The war erupted amid a power struggle between the army and RSF ahead of a planned transition to civilian rule. It ruined much of Khartoum, uprooted more than 12-million Sudanese from their homes, and left about half of the 50-million population suffering acute hunger.

Overall deaths are hard to estimate, but a study published last year said the toll may have reached 61,000 in Khartoum state alone in the first 14 months of the conflict.

The war has added to instability in the region, with Sudan’s neighbours Libya, Chad, Central African Republic and South Sudan each weathering internal bouts of conflict over recent years.

Reuters