Saudi Arabia urges warring Sudanese sides to stop fighting

Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan urged warring Sudanese sides to place the interests of the people first, calling on both sides to stop the year-long war.

Prince Faisal spoke separately with Sudanese army leader Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and commander of paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, according to a foreign ministry statement on Wednesday.

The top Saudi diplomat “stressed the importance of protecting Sudan and its people from further destruction and worsening of the difficult humanitarian conditions.”

He also underscored the need to “give priority to the interests of the Sudanese people and to stop the fighting to protect state institutions.”

Saudi Arabia, alongside the US, has played an essential role in mediating the conflict between al-Burhan and Dagalo and initiated peace talks in Jeddah last year for this purpose.

The talks, however, only led to brief truces.

The war in Sudan broke out in April last year between forces loyal to al-Burhan and the RSF, creating a severe humanitarian crisis, killing thousands and displacing millions.

Secretary of State Antony Blinken earlier this week discussed the Sudan situation with his Saudi counterpart in Riyadh and “efforts to resume negotiations under the Jeddah platform aimed at ending the conflict in Sudan and preventing further widespread civilian harm,” according to a State Department statement.