In a statement, the Sudanese Foreign Ministry said that, behind a false desire to mediate in the ongoing conflict since 2023, Nairobi has “become one of the main centers of political, financial and logistical activities of the militia” and Kenyan President William Ruto has effectively sold out “to the regional financiers of the RSF”. It is not the first time that Khartoum has recalled its ambassador. The Sudanese authorities had already done so in January 2024, after Ruto had received with great fanfare in Nairobi General Mohamed Hamdan “Hemeti”, leader of the RSF. Kenya for its part said that it “continues to carefully monitor the evolution of the political and security situation in the Republic of Sudan” and expressed concern about the escalation of the conflict, described as “one of the worst humanitarian and security crises in the world”, and the slow progress in finding a solution. Rumours of an imminent establishment of a parallel government close to the RSF had also raised fears in recent days at the United Nations, which warned in a statement that such a move risks worsening the conflict and dividing the country even further.
“the largest civilian front in support of democratic transition, development and prosperity,”
For SPLM-N leader Abdelaziz al Hilu, the coalition works to implement “the largest civilian front in support of democratic transition, development and prosperity,” with the aim of ending the suffering of citizens and opening humanitarian corridors for food aid. Al Hilu accused the military-led government in Port Sudan – the Sovereign Council led by General Fattah al Burhan – of denying the existence of famine in Sudan and neglecting the suffering of the population and criticized the government’s policies, alleging discrimination in education and currency distribution in an attempt to “divide Sudan.” Al Hilu then called for the exclusion of groups that exploit religion and ethnicity in political activities and urged a new social contract that addresses how Sudan should be governed, establishing a permanent constitution and a new state free from corruption. “We want to end the wars in Sudan,” al-Hilu said, stressing the need to recognize cultural, religious and ethnic diversity in power structures, wealth distribution and education and to guarantee the rights of all Sudanese, and defining the ongoing conflict as a struggle between the “center” – which he said controls power and wealth – and the “periphery.”
However, Nairobi’s initiative does not have the support of former Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok, deposed by the military in 2021 after a brief period in government following the overthrow of President Omar al Bashir. Differences in opinion recently forced him to leave the Coordination of Democratic Civilian Forces (Taqaduum), which he himself founded, in open protest against the proposal to support the pro-RSF parallel government. The latter, at war against the ruling junta, have been guilty of numerous massacres of civilians (the latest in the White Nile State, with over 200 people killed in three days), and the proposal to share power with several former members of the infamous Janjaweed forces (the “demons on horseback” created by Bashir in Darfur) did not please many.
