CAIRO (Reuters) – The foreign ministry of Sudan, which has ties to the army, has rejected a proposal put forward at a regional summit to deploy peacekeeping forces in order to protect civilians. This decision comes as a blow to hopes that the summit could contribute to resolving the ongoing conflict that has plagued Sudan for almost three months. The power struggle between the army and paramilitary Rapid Support Forces has resulted in the death of over 1,000 civilians and the displacement of 2.9 million people, as reported by the United Nations.
Neither side involved in the conflict has gained a clear advantage, causing much of the capital to be abandoned or destroyed. Previous mediation efforts have proven unsuccessful in finding a resolution. The summit, organized by the East African regional body IGAD, brought together heads of states and representatives from various countries and organizations. The suggestion of deploying regional peacekeeping forces and involving civilians in talks was put forward as a potential solution.
This summit marked a significant event as it was the first of its kind in weeks. Previous discussions in Jeddah were suspended due to repeated violations of the ceasefire, prompting the involvement of the United States and Saudi Arabia. The Sudanese army had chosen to boycott the IGAD mediation effort, accusing Kenya of providing a safe haven to the Rapid Support Forces.
In response to the rejected proposal, the Sudanese foreign ministry expressed its discontent with IGAD’s disregard for the opinions of member states. It went on to state that the Sudanese government rejects the deployment of foreign forces on its soil and considers them to be hostile. However, the ministry did express support for an upcoming summit organized by Egypt, which is perceived to be more aligned with the army than the RSF.
The IGAD summit, held in Addis Ababa, included American representatives who made it clear that they do not support the idea of future military rule in Sudan. U.S. Ambassador John Godfrey emphasized that reaching a negotiated settlement does not mean reverting back to the status quo that existed before April 15.
(Reporting by Nafisa Eltahir and Khalid Abdelaziz, Editing by William Maclean)
Credit: The Star : News Feed
