New York: Europe and the Arabs
Abdel Fattah Al-Burhan, head of the Transitional Sovereignty Council in Sudan, called on the United Nations and the international community to consider the Rapid Support Forces and the militias allied with them, “terrorist groups to protect the Sudanese people, the region and the world.” According to what was reported in the daily news bulletin of the United Nations, and we received a copy of it on Friday morning
In his country's speech before the general debate of the United Nations General Assembly, Al-Burhan said that the people have been facing a devastating war since April 15 launched against them by the Rapid Support Forces, which he described as rebels in alliance with "tribal, regional and international militias and mercenaries from different parts of the world."
He said it committed "crimes against humanity and war crimes in most parts of Sudan and practiced ethnic cleansing and sexual violence." He added that the crimes that occurred in areas such as El Geneina in West Darfur represent a shock to the global conscience, as he put it.
He stressed that every means would be exerted to stop the war by responding to all initiatives, and referred to the Jeddah meetings at the invitation of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the United States of America. He said that good progress had been achieved in those meetings had it not been for what he described as the intransigence of the rebels and their refusal to leave residential neighborhoods.
He talked about accepting the IGAD initiative and the initiative of neighboring countries that was held in Egypt. He said that he still "to this day extends his hand for peace, stopping the war, and alleviating the suffering of the people." He accused the Rapid Support Forces of rejecting peaceful solutions and insisting on destroying the state.
He refused to describe the war as an internal war between two armed parties. He said that the attack did not stop at the armed forces, but rather included all components of the state. He added: "Innocent citizens are not part of the armed forces. The Masalit in West Darfur are not part of the armed forces."
He said that this war has become a threat to regional and international peace and security because "the rebels have sought help from outlaw and terrorist groups."
He expressed his appreciation for the efforts of the United Nations, under the auspices of the Secretary-General, to support the humanitarian situation in Sudan, and the efforts of various United Nations agencies and other international and regional agencies.
He appealed to agencies and countries to fulfill their pledges to fill the large gap in food, medicine and shelter for large sectors of the Sudanese people affected by the war.
He affirmed his commitment to previous pledges to transfer power to the Sudanese people "with broad consensus and national consent, according to which the armed forces will permanently withdraw from political action and the transfer of power will take place through legitimate and peaceful means represented by elections."
He said, "We see that there will be a short transitional phase in which the state is run by a civilian government of independents, during which the current security, humanitarian, and economic conditions and reconstruction are addressed, followed by general elections through which the Sudanese choose who will rule them."
In the context of his emphasis on the state's commitment to achieving sustainable development, he stated that stopping and freezing international aid in the previous period had negatively affected achieving development, social protection, confronting climate change and the food crisis, and exacerbated the conditions of refugees and displaced persons.
He appealed to donors and various relief agencies to continue to support and address the humanitarian situation in Sudan and to help those in need.