Sudan’s Burhan rejects aid delivery to RSF-held areas
February 11, 2024 (AL-DABBAH) – Sudan’s military leader, General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, on Sunday refused to allow humanitarian aid to reach areas controlled by the rival Rapid Support Forces (RSF), led by Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo “Hemetti”.
Hemetti, who leads the paramilitary RSF, had appealed to international organizations last week to bypass the government and deliver aid directly to his forces, citing dire humanitarian needs in areas they control.
On Sunday, General al-Burhan visited the 19th Infantry Division in Al-Dabbah in the Northern State to inspect the military region’s personnel. He met with officers, non-commissioned officers, and soldiers.
Sovereign Council media reported that al-Burhan condemned the rebels’ violence and looting, highlighting their hypocrisy in seeking support from international organizations after terrorizing communities.
“This will not happen until we end this war and defeat these criminal rebels and drive them from the homes of citizens, government and service institutions, and from all the cities they have plundered—Nyala, El Geneina, Madani, and Khartoum. They will be forced to return everything they stole,” he said.
The denial of delivery of humanitarian aid to the civilians in the rebel-held areas has become an official doctrine for the Sudanese military after Operation Lifeline Sudan (OLS) aimed to alleviate the suffering caused by war and famine in southern Sudan in 1989.
The OLS, a multilateral agreement involving the SPLM, was used by the then-rebel group to enhance its control of the civilians. It was allocated on political consideration and encouraged them to establish a civil administration in the group-held areas.
Meanwhile, the head of the Sudan Liberation Movement Transitional Council (SLM-TC), Al-Hadi Idris, announced a campaign on Saturday to open humanitarian corridors in war-torn Darfur. Idris, who also heads the Sudanese Revolutionary Front (SRF), called the situation in Darfur “catastrophic” and urged international actors to intervene.
These developments highlight the complex and escalating conflict in Sudan, where civilians trapped in the crossfire increasingly require humanitarian assistance.
General Burhan emphasized the Sudanese people’s solidarity with their armed forces, stressing that they fight together for the nation’s dignity and victory.
“The Sudanese army has not been defeated and will not be defeated, God willing, and the state’s battle against the Daglo’s terrorist militia is a battle of dignity. These forces rebelled, looted the money and property of the Sudanese people, raped their women, and killed citizens,” he stressed.
“These rebels and their leaders will face justice,” General Burhan continued, “They are unacceptable to the Sudanese people.”
Addressing rumours of a coup attempt, General Burhan dismissed them as false. “The army stands united,” he declared, “and together we will crush this rebellion.”
(ST)