Another Sudanese general renews calls to integrate RSF into the national army
February 25, 2023 (KHARTOUM) – General Yasir al-Atta Khartoum, a member of the Sovereign Council, joined calls by the army leaders to integrate the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) into the Sudan Armed Forces (SAF), saying that the existence of a parallel army would lead to the collapse of the country.
The influence of Mohamed Hamdan Daglo “Hemetti” RSF Commander and Deputy Head of the Sovereign Council, has been openly contested by the army’s top leaders after statements by Abdel Fattah al-Burhan SAF commander-in-chief on February 16, when he asserted his support for the Framework Agreement because it would end the parallel existence of the RSF.
“The RSF must be integrated into the blessed womb from which it was born earlier,” al-Atta said, referring to the army. ‘There is no respectable modern democracy with two armies. To establish a modern state, there must be a single, independent, national, and strong army under the authority of a political democratic state,” he stressed.
Al-Burhan and Hemetti are at odds over the framework agreement as the army chief calls to open the deal for more political forces in harmony with the position of two former rebel groups. The RSF commander call to be committed to the agreed parties.
Hemetti angered al-Burhan when he spoke about the involvement of former army generals in a coup attempt to overthrow the Russian-backed president of the Central African Republic. Also, he is blamed for his close cooperation with Russian mercenaries in the neighbouring country.
Al-Atta who was addressing a collective wedding in the River Nile State said that the combatants of the signatories of the Juba Peace Agreement should also be integrated into the national army in accordance with the Juba Peace Agreement.
After that, he referred again to the economic activities of the RSF commander, saying that “personal and economic gains in the sense of owning a private army could lead to the collapse of the Sudanese state.”
This is the first time that an army leader pinpoints the economic activities of the RSF leader who is working in the mining, agriculture and transport sectors.
On February 6, a member of the Sovereignty Council, Shams al-Din Kabbashi, called for the formation of a single army by integrating the paramilitary force into the army and implementing security arrangements for the armed groups.
Hemetti who is currently outside Sudan in the UAE reiterated on February 19, his commitment to the integration of the RSF into the national army and stressed that they are already part of the Sudan Armed Forces.
Al-Atta stated that the armed forces believe in the need to achieve the goals of the December revolution and the democratic transition.
He pledged that the army would work to protect the homeland from internal and external threats and protect the people’s choice for the democratic transition, in addition to its commitment to its duty to prevent the state from collapsing.
“The armed forces are not afraid of internal and external threats, and we renew the commitment of the commander-in-chief to support any keen effort to reach a democratic transition, achieve the dream of our youth and secure access to free and fair elections,” he said.
(ST)