Sudan’s de facto leader,General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, has dismissed any possibility of negotiations with paramilitary forces following his survival of a drone attack in the country’s troubled eastern region on Wednesday.
The drone strike, which targeted a ceremony at the Gibet base where al-Burhan was attending a graduation event, resulted in five fatalities, according to the army.
Despite the attack, al-Burhan, who remained unscathed, addressed the troops at the base with a resolute stance.
“We will not retreat, we will not surrender, and we will not negotiate,” he declared, reaffirming his position against the paramilitary forces.
The Gibet base, situated approximately 100 kilometers, 62 miles, from Port Sudan—where the army-aligned government relocated after conflict erupted with the Rapid Support Forces in April of the previous year—became the focal point of his defiant speech.
In the aftermath of the assault, there was no immediate attribution of responsibility. Meanwhile, the United States has extended an invitation for negotiations to both parties next month in Geneva.
However, Sudan’s foreign ministry indicated on Tuesday that additional discussions would be necessary before any talks could proceed.
Al-Burhan, in his Wednesday address, categorically rejected the notion of dialogue with the RSF.
He emphasized that any peace initiative must acknowledge and engage the Sudanese state.
“We will not lay down our guns until we clean this country of every conspirator and every rebel,” he asserted.
The ongoing war, which al-Burhan has pledged to win “with our head high,” has already claimed tens of thousands of lives, with some estimates reaching up to 150,000, as reported by US envoy to Sudan Tom Perriello.
The conflict has also led to severe human rights abuses and precipitated what the United Nations describes as the world’s largest displacement crisis, with over 10 million people displaced across Sudan, many in regions facing imminent famine and deteriorating humanitarian conditions.
Wednesday’s drone strike marked the first attack on a military base in Sudan’s eastern Red Sea state, where the army, government, and United Nations have established their headquarters.
The RSF maintains control over significant portions of the country, including most of the capital Khartoum, the central Al-Jazira state, nearly the entire western Darfur region, and extensive areas in southern Kordofan.
In June, the RSF launched an offensive on Sennar state in the southeast, seizing the state capital and displacing over 130,000 people, according to the UN.
Additionally, paramilitary forces are besieging El-Fasher, the capital of North Darfur state and the region’s largest city not under RSF control, depriving hundreds of thousands of civilians of essential supplies.
Local activist committees reported that between Saturday and Monday, RSF bombardments killed 65 people, predominantly children, in El-Fasher.
Both factions have faced accusations of war crimes, including the deliberate targeting of civilians and obstructing humanitarian aid.
