Dakar, Nov 6, (dpa/GNA) – Sudan’s Rapid Support Forces (RSF) rebel group, on Thursday agreed to a humanitarian ceasefire as proposed by a US-led mediation group that includes the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Saudi Arabia and Egypt.
Agreement is awaited from the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF), which has been fighting the RSF for more than two and a half years. Previous ceasefires at the start of the conflict in 2023 collapsed on several occasions.
Massad Boulos, advisor on Africa to the administration of President Donald Trump, said at the start of the week that both sides had expressed openness to a three-month humanitarian ceasefire.
A nine-month negotiation phase would be discussed at the same time, he said. De facto Sudanese President and SAF commander Abdel Fattah al-Burhan has in the past rejected talks with the RSF.
Sudan’s Security and Defence Council headed by al-Burhan, discussed the mediation group’s proposal on Tuesday, stating that it welcomed the efforts of friendly countries, aimed at ending the suffering of the Sudanese people and thanking the US administration, according to Sudanese media.
The council, however, did not react to the ceasefire plan.
The RSF, which has seized most of Darfur in the west of the country and now controls around half of all populated areas, has been accused of widespread atrocities. It is alleged to be receiving support from the UAE, including arms. The UAE denies this.
The RSF is seen as a successor to the Janjaweed militia, held responsible for mass killings and atrocities resulting in up to 300,000 deaths in the same region, between 2003 and 2020.
GNA