In response to US President Joe Biden’s demand for the warring sides to resume talks, Sudan’s army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) declared they are amenable to peaceful resolutions to the conflict, which has been raging for more than 17 months.
Army Chief, Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, who made this announcement on Wednesday, said the Sudanese government was still open to any positive initiatives aimed at ending the conflict. RSF Leader, Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, then expressed a similar opinion early on Thursday.
“We reaffirm our commitment to ceasefire negotiations. We believe that the path to peace lies in dialogue, not random violence, and we will continue to engage in peace processes to secure a future free from fear and suffering for all Sudanese civilians,” Dagalo said on X.
Nonetheless, both men accused one another of abuses and shared guilt for the inability to put a stop to a conflict that has claimed the lives of over 12,000 people since it began in April 2023. They haven’t provided a detailed plan for arriving at a peaceful resolution.
Competition between the army and the RSF, which had previously shared power following a coup, erupted into open battle and marked the start of the conflict.
The United States-led mediators reported last month that although they had obtained commitments from both sides during discussions in Switzerland to enhance access for humanitarian aid, the progress had been impeded by the Sudanese army’s absence from the talks.
“We stand ready to work with all international partners in pursuit of a peaceful resolution that alleviates the suffering of our people and sets Sudan on a path towards security, stability, the rule of law, and the democratic transfer of power,” Burhan, the army chief, said in a statement.
Each side has accused the other of abusing power, although both have refuted earlier claims made by rights organisations and the US. Neither responded to the accusations or provided a statement in response to requests for comment.
Earlier in the month, a United Nations-mandated panel stated that both sides in Sudan’s civil war had engaged in acts that may qualify as war crimes, and proposed that to protect civilians, international powers must expand the arms embargo and send in peacekeepers.