UAE-backed RSF accepts truce proposal to pause Sudan genocide
The Sudanese army has not yet accepted the proposal backed by the UAE, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, and the US
The UAE-backed Rapid Support Forces (RSF) announced on 6 November their acceptance of a humanitarian ceasefire proposal put forward by Egypt, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and the US, known collectively as the “Quad.”
“In response to the aspirations and interests of the Sudanese people, the Rapid Support Forces affirms its agreement to enter into the humanitarian truce proposed by the Quad countries,” the armed group said in a statement.
The RSF stated it is ready to begin immediate discussions on ceasefire arrangements “to address the catastrophic humanitarian impact of the war and protect civilians.”
An official from the Sudanese military, which the RSF has been fighting for control of the country, told AP that the army would only agree to a truce that requires the RSF to withdraw from civilian areas and give up weapons.
The RSF currently controls large swathes of the southwestern territories of the country, including most of the region of Darfur, after capturing the city of El-Fasher on 26 October.
RSF forces reportedly massacred thousands of civilians who failed to flee before the city fell.
Satellite imagery released by Yale University's Humanitarian Research Lab (HRL) showed massive blood stains in areas consistent with RSF movements.
“At least three of the reddish instances have objects nearby measuring approximately 1.3–2.0 meters, consistent in dimension with human bodies,” the research lab said.
“Yale HRL has identified multiple credible reports of mass killings in El-Fasher across social media and open sources. There are multiple reports of civilians dying while fleeing El-Fasher, including due to wounds incurred by RSF,” it added.
“Families hid in trenches, bodies lay in the streets, and children were killed in front of their parents as Sudanese paramilitaries advanced into the western city of El-Fasher,” AFP wrote after speaking with some of the 36,000 people who managed to flee.
The current civil war in Sudan began in 2023, when the commander of the army, General Abdel-Fattah Burhan, clashed with the RSF over plans to integrate their forces.
Burhan's former deputy, General Mohammed Hamdan Dagalo (Hemedti), leads the RSF, which enjoys UAE backing.
Both men were leaders of a 2019 counterinsurgency that ousted longtime Sudanese president Omar al-Bashir.
Two years later, Burhan and Dagalo partnered to carry out a coup against the government of former prime minister Abdalla Hamdok before their partnership broke down and war erupted.