Sudan army will attend talks with RSF in Saudi

The First Lieutenant General of the Sudanese Army has said that he and other representatives will attend talks in Saudi Arabia with members of the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF).

In an interview with the Egyptian news channel Al-Qahera, Shams Al-Din Al-Kabbashi said that talks in Jeddah will focus on a ceasefire and humanitarian needs in the country.

There has been no functioning government in Sudan since October 2021 when the military overthrew Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok’s transitional government and declared a state of emergency.

Since 15 April Army Chief General Abdel Fattah Al-Burhan’s Sudanese Armed Forces and Paramilitary Commander Lt General Mohamed Hamdan Daglo’s RSF have fought for control of Sudan on the streets of Khartoum.

The fighting has had a devastating impact on Sudan where tens of thousands have tried to escape the country and more than 500 people have been killed in gunfire and shelling.

READ: Sudan’s death toll rises to 528: Health Ministry

Several hospitals have been forced to close after coming under attack or suffering from a shortage of electricity, blood, oxygen, food and water. Healthcare professionals have said the whole system is close to collapse.

Last week, the UN envoy to Sudan Volker Peretz said that both sides of the conflict are open to dialogue and that each of them has nominated representatives for upcoming negotiations which would be held in Jeddah or Jubah in South Sudan.

However, Al-Burhan has previously said he will not sit down with Daglo, who has said himself he will not negotiate until the army ceases all hostility.

The UN has called for urgent peace efforts in Sudan to avoid a major refugee crisis and appealed to neighbouring countries to keep their borders open for displaced people.

Both sides have accused the other of violating a ceasefire brokered by the US and Saudi Arabia last week.