Possible truce between Sudan’s army and Rapid Support Forces following mediation.

potential confrontation

• On Thursday, the army warned of a possible confrontation between its forces and the Rapid Support Forces after the deployment of units affiliated with it, in a public reference to long-term disputes that impede efforts to restore civilian rule.
• The Rapid Support Forces, which along with the army overthrew former President Omar al-Bashir in 2019, began redeploying its units in the capital, Khartoum, and elsewhere, amid talks that began last month to integrate the paramilitary forces into the army under a transitional plan leading to new elections.
• Dagalo, known in Sudan as Hemedti, is the vice president of the ruling Transitional Sovereignty Council, which is headed by Al-Burhan.
• Sources close to Al-Burhan and Daglo said on Friday that they are still at odds over who will assume the position of Commander-in-Chief of the Army during the merger period, which will extend for several years. The RSF says the commander should be the civilian head of state, which the army rejects.
• The dispute between the army and the Rapid Support Forces has delayed the final signing of an agreement with political parties and the formation of a civilian government.

Mediation between the army and rapid support

• After the warning issued by the Sudanese army on Thursday, a number of parties at the local and international levels made offers to mediate, including Finance Minister Jibril Ibrahim, the governor of the Darfur region, Minni Minawi, and a member of the Sovereignty Council, Malik Agar, who are three former opposition leaders who assumed positions after the peace agreement in 2020.
• The three said in a statement on Friday, “After a frank and serious dialogue, the Leader (Daglo) assured us of his full commitment to non-escalation and his readiness to sit with his brother, the Chairman of the Sovereignty Council, and his brothers in the leadership of the Sudanese Armed Forces at any time and without restriction or condition in order to reach a radical solution to the crisis.” It will stop bloodshed and achieve security and tranquility for the people and the country.
• In a separate statement early on Saturday morning, the mediators said they had met with Al-Burhan, with whom they found ready “to take any step necessary to resolve the emergency problem between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the Rapid Support Forces and to restore things to normal.”
• And they added, “We assure the honorable citizens that the crisis is on the way to an end.”
• Army sources told Reuters that in order to calm the escalation, the Rapid Support Forces must withdraw their personnel stationed near a military airport in the northern city of Marawi, and that their movements be in coordination with the army and within legal limits. Sources from the Rapid Support Forces told Reuters on Friday that the moves came in coordination with Al-Burhan.

The Forces for Freedom and Change, Sudan’s main civil coalition, joined the opposition’s pro-democracy committees and trade unions in accusing Sudan’s dissolved National Congress Party, which was headed by Bashir and still has a presence within the army, of “creating strife” in a rare joint statement.

Earlier this week, an official in the dissolved National Congress Party told Reuters that the party is increasing its moves to stand up to this pending agreement.

The Forces for Freedom and Change participated in a power-sharing agreement with the army and the Rapid Support Forces after the overthrow of al-Bashir, but the military coup against the civilian government in October 2021 provided an opportunity for al-Bashir’s supporters to return to public life again.

Hamidti said that the return of Al-Bashir’s supporters to the scene made him regret the coup and prompted him to support the agreement to start a new transitional phase.