Abdel Fattah al-Burhan visits key navy web site as WHO chief denounces lethal assault on hospital in Darfur area.
Sudan’s military chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan has visited the navy’s headquarters within the capital Khartoum in his first look there since authorities forces claimed to have damaged a months-long siege by the paramilitary Fast Help Forces (RSF).
Accompanied by prime navy officers on Sunday, al-Burhan praised the “resilience and sacrifices” of troopers who defended the military’s Basic Command for 20 months, vowing to “eradicate” the RSF and pursue its fighters “in each nook of Sudan”.
He additionally hailed the continued operations by the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) elsewhere within the nation, together with in Omdurman, Bahri, and el-Fasher, the place fierce clashes have been reported in latest days.
“Our forces are of their greatest situation,” al-Burhan mentioned on the headquarters that was recaptured final week after being encircled by RSF for the reason that begin of the conflict in April 2023.
The announcement on Friday by the SAF that it had efficiently lifted the RSF blockade on Khartoum and took again management of elements of the town signalled a possible turning level within the almost two-year conflict. The RSF denied the military claims as “propaganda” geared toward boosting morale.
Earlier this month, the military recaptured Wad Madani, the capital of Gezira state, which had been held by the RSF for greater than a yr. There are stories that navy forces have carried out alleged ethnic killings after taking up the strategic metropolis.
The RSF has been accused of committing varied abuses – together with an allegation by the USA that it has carried out genocide – through the conflict.
Al Jazeera’s Hiba Morgan, reporting from Khartoum, mentioned al-Burhan’s feedback on Sunday signalled that the final was not fascinated with diplomacy presently.
“Al-Burhan made it clear he is not going to be holding negotiations with the RSF, that there shall be no reconciliation, and that there shall be preventing till the final insurgent is killed,” she mentioned.
“It’s not the primary time we’re listening to these phrases from the military chief, however regional companions and the worldwide neighborhood have tried to pursue a diplomatic answer as effectively. Basic al-Burhan seems to go for a navy victory proper now, particularly since previously few weeks the military has been capable of regain management of extra territory.”
Assault on hospital ‘full of sufferers’
The looks comes as the pinnacle of the World Well being Group (WHO) decried an assault that killed dozens of individuals at a hospital in el-Fasher within the Darfur area.
The assault late on Friday focused the Saudi hospital, the principle hospital within the besieged space. It was not instantly clear who carried out the assault. An area official mentioned the RSF carried out a drone strike.
At the least 70 individuals have been killed and 19 others have been wounded, WHO Director-Basic Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus confirmed on Sunday.
“On the time of the assault, the hospital was full of sufferers receiving care,” Tedros mentioned in a submit on X.
Saudi Arabia condemned the assault as a “violation of worldwide regulation and worldwide humanitarian regulation”.
Native teams and worldwide rights teams have beforehand reported assaults on displacement camps and different amenities by the RSF which have killed and wounded civilians.
Greater than 5,000 individuals have been killed or injured for the reason that RSF began its try to take over el-Fasher final Could, in response to native authorities.
El-Fasher is the largest metropolis and has the largest useful airport within the Darfur area, mentioned Amgad Fareid Eltayeb from the Fikra for Research and Growth assume tank. It’s the final main space within the area managed by the military.
“The RSF has been attempting to take el-Fasher as a way to set the scene for saying a authorities of its personal together with its allies,” Eltayeb advised Al Jazeera.
“What the RSF and its allies need is to totally take over Darfur as a way to set up a authorities, leaving Sudan with a mannequin much like what occurred in Libya.”
Eltayeb additionally expressed concern a couple of sample of assaults by the RSF since January 15 which have focused water dams, energy stations and oil refineries.
