Sudan armed groups decide to reunify SRF factions

July 26, 2018 (KHARTOUM) – The two factions of the Sudanese Revolutionary Front (SRF) agreed to reunify the rebel umbrella which had split in October 2015 into two factions one led by Malik Agar and another by Girbil Ibrahim.

The reunification’s decision was announced after extensive discussions, comprehensive review of the past experiences and the extrapolation of the present and future tasks of the revolutionary action said a joint statement released at the end of a three-day meeting.

The rebel alliance which includes the Justice and Equality Movement of Gibril Ibrahim, (JEM) Sudan Liberation Movement led by Minni Minnawi (SLM-MM) and Sudan People’s Liberation Movement-North of Malik Agar (SPLM-N Agar) and other factions from eastern Sudan agreed on the importance of the SRF as a strategic alliance defending the cause of the marginalized people and other national democratic forces in Sudan.

The statement said that the SRF forces felt the need to develop the rebel umbrella as a historical bloc capable of radical change but also pointed that their unity will positively contribute to strengthening Sudan Call alliance which gathers political and armed opposition groups.

The split occurred in October 2018 when the JEM, SLM-MM and SLM-Abdel Wahid and Democratic Unionist Party faction led Tom Hajo elected Girbril Ibrahim as the chairman of the SRF in the absence of the SPLM-N and its allied factions of the National Umma Party-Naser al-Din and the United Popular Front for Liberation and Justice (UPFLJ).

On 18 October 2015, three groups from Darfur region – JEM, Sudan Liberation Movement Abdel Wahid al-Nur (SLM-AW) and Sudan Liberation Movement (SLM-MM) – plus a splinter faction of the Democratic Unionist Party led by al-Tom Hajo announced the election of Ibrahim as chairperson of the rebel umbrella replacing Agar who led the alliance since its creation.

At the time, there was a conflict between the SRF groups of over the chairpersonship of the alliance, following their failure to reach an agreement on a mechanism for rotating leadership.

The statement said the meeting set up a committee to lay the foundations and rules on which the two SRF factions will be united.

The two SFR factions furthermore called on the SPLM-N led by Abdel Aziz Hilu and the SLM-AW to rejoin them and form one alliance of the armed groups.

In a meeting held in Addis Ababa Last February, the SRF led by Minni Minnawi agreed with the SPLM-N Hilu to reunite the SRF factions. But, since al-Hilu declined even to take part in the Sudan call alliance meeting asking that the SPLM-N Agar changes its name.

(ST)