Sudan delegation in Saudi Arabia for talks with US ceasefire mediators

A Sudanese delegation arrived Friday in Saudi Arabia for talks with US mediators on conditions for the government’s participation in ceasefire negotiations in Geneva next week, Sudanese authorities and a diplomat said.

The United States last month invited Sudan’s warring sides to hold ceasefire talks, more than a year after fighting broke out between the regular army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF).

“The Sudanese government has decided to send a delegation led by the minister of minerals, Mohammed Bashir Abu Namo, to discuss with the United States its invitation for negotiations set to take place on August 14,” said a government statement.

The delegation arrived in the Saudi coastal city of Jeddah to “discuss the government conditions with American officials to take part in Geneva talks,” a Sudanese diplomat based in the kingdom told AFP.

The RSF, vying for control of Sudan, has swiftly accepted the US invitation. The foreign ministry, which is loyal to the army, said negotiations must be preceded by “more discussions.”

Any peace initiative “must recognize, invite and consult the Sudanese state,” the country’s de facto ruler and army chief General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan said in late July, referring to his government.

“We will not lay down our guns until we clean this country of every conspirator and every rebel,” he vowed.

The Geneva talks will be co-hosted by Saudi Arabia and include the African Union, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates and the United Nations as observers, Washington has said.

Alessandra Velluci, a Geneva-based spokeswoman for the United Nations, said it was “not a UN initiative, but of course, we welcome all initiatives that can be helpful in solving the crisis in Sudan.”

The war since April 2023 between al-Burhan’s forces and those loyal to paramilitary commander Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo has killed tens of thousands of people, uprooted millions, and triggered a dire humanitarian crisis and warnings of famine.

Previous negotiations in Jeddah have failed to put an end to the devastating fighting.

Both sides have been accused of war crimes including deliberately targeting civilians, while the fighting has dealt severe blows to Sudan’s already frail healthcare system and caused many humanitarian organizations to cease operations in the country.

Both the army and the RSF have also been accused of looting humanitarian aid.