Many have fled the civil war in Sudan's Darfur region for neighbouring countries such as Chad. Reuters
Many have fled the civil war in Sudan's Darfur region for neighbouring countries such as Chad. Reuters
Many have fled the civil war in Sudan's Darfur region for neighbouring countries such as Chad. Reuters
Many have fled the civil war in Sudan's Darfur region for neighbouring countries such as Chad. Reuters

Sudan's army rejects UN truce after hopes raised for aid to reach starving millions


Hamza Hendawi
  • English
  • Arabic

The army in Sudan has rejected a truce in its war against a rival paramilitary during Ramadan, dashing hopes that humanitarian assistance could be delivered to the nation where an estimated 18 million people face acute hunger.

Sudan descended into civil conflict in last April after clashes broke out in the capital Khartoum between the military, led by Gen Abdel Fattah Burhan, and the paramilitary group known as the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), commanded by Gen Mohamed Dagalo.

Hopes for a truce were raised at the weekend after the UN Security Council adopted a resolution calling for a ceasefire to coincide with Ramadan, which began on Monday.

The UK-drafted resolution also called on the warring sides to enable the delivery of humanitarian aid to the millions of Sudanese facing hunger.

But the army rejected any truce with the RSF, formerly known as the Janjaweed militia, unless it surrendered the territory it has captured from the army.

“No negotiations with the Janjaweed, whether in Ramadan or any other time, before their complete surrender,” said Gen Yasser Al Attah in a speech at a ceremony marking the completion of basic military training by more than 1,000 volunteers in the eastern city of Kassala.

Gen Al Attah said the army would not heed the call for a truce until the RSF had withdrawn from the capital Khartoum and the western regions of Darfur and Kordofan, as well as Al Jazeera to the south of the capital.

The RSF had welcomed the UN resolution but reports emerged of continued fighting in eastern Sudan on Monday.

A series of ceasefires brokered by Saudi Arabia and the US in the early days of the war were ignored or proved short-lived, with both sides seemingly determined to fight on until victory.

The army has generally fared poorly against the RSF during the war, losing much of Khartoum and a string of cities in the west and south of the capital. However, it appears to have recently regained the initiative with strategic battlefield victories in Omdurman in the greater Khartoum area.

The fighting has destroyed much of the capital and displaced about eight million people nationwide. In Sudan's outer regions, each side has accused the other of war crimes against civilians.

A scene of aerial bombardment during clashes between the paramilitary RSF and the army in Khartoum North, Sudan. Reuters
A scene of aerial bombardment during clashes between the paramilitary RSF and the army in Khartoum North, Sudan. Reuters

The war has also led to a hunger crisis in Sudan.

The UN's World Food Programme said in a report last month that at least 25 million people across the country and in neighbouring South Sudan and Chad are struggling with soaring rates of hunger and malnutrition due to the war.

The UN agency previously warned that 18 million people were "acutely food insecure" and about 5 million faced starvation.

“Unless this conflict is resolved, unfettered access is granted to humanitarian agencies and funding is received, this crisis will only worsen,” Michael Dunford, the WFP's regional director for Eastern Africa, said in the report.

Unicef, the UN’s women and children agency, has warned the war is pushing Sudan towards famine and a catastrophic loss of life, especially among the young.

Severe malnutrition in children is intensifying beyond its worst projections and there have been outbreaks of cholera, measles and malaria, Unicef said in a report this month.

“There is also evidence of spikes in malnutrition-related child deaths, particularly among the displaced,” it added.

Members of the Sudanese armed popular resistance, which is allied with the army, parade in the streets of Gedaref in eastern Sudan. AFP
Members of the Sudanese armed popular resistance, which is allied with the army, parade in the streets of Gedaref in eastern Sudan. AFP

Gen Al Burhan and his one-time ally Gen Dagalo have each sought foreign support and embarked on trips abroad, including to regional heavyweights Egypt and Ethiopia.

Both men have presented themselves as the legitimate leader of Sudan and argued they were fighting to restore the country's democratic transition and bring prosperity.

However, many in Sudan see the war as simply a struggle for political and military supremacy between two generals.

The pair are widely held responsible for indirectly igniting the war when they jointly staged a coup in October 2021 that toppled a civilian-led government that was leading the country’s democratic transition after the removal of dictator Omar Al Bashir in 2019.

The coup plunged the nation into its worst economic crisis in living memory and created a security vacuum that rekindled deadly ethnic rivalries in outlying regions. More than 100 anti-coup protesters were killed by security forces in the months that followed the power grab.

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COMPANY%20PROFILE
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Who's who in Yemen conflict

Houthis: Iran-backed rebels who occupy Sanaa and run unrecognised government

Yemeni government: Exiled government in Aden led by eight-member Presidential Leadership Council

Southern Transitional Council: Faction in Yemeni government that seeks autonomy for the south

Habrish 'rebels': Tribal-backed forces feuding with STC over control of oil in government territory

THE BIO

Favourite place to go to in the UAE: The desert sand dunes, just after some rain

Who inspires you: Anybody with new and smart ideas, challenging questions, an open mind and a positive attitude

Where would you like to retire: Most probably in my home country, Hungary, but with frequent returns to the UAE

Favorite book: A book by Transilvanian author, Albert Wass, entitled ‘Sword and Reap’ (Kard es Kasza) - not really known internationally

Favourite subjects in school: Mathematics and science

Company profile

Company name: Dharma

Date started: 2018

Founders: Charaf El Mansouri, Nisma Benani, Leah Howe

Based: Abu Dhabi

Sector: TravelTech

Funding stage: Pre-series A 

Investors: Convivialite Ventures, BY Partners, Shorooq Partners, L& Ventures, Flat6Labs

AWARDS
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EBest%20Male%20black%20belt%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ELucas%20Protasio%20(BRA)%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBest%20female%20black%20belt%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EJulia%20Alves%20(BRA)%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBest%20Masters%20black%20belt%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Igor%20Silva%20(BRA)%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBest%20Asian%20Jiu-Jitsu%20Federation%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Kazakhstan%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBest%20Academy%20in%20UAE%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ECommando%20Group%2C%20Abu%20Dhabi%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBest%20International%20Academy%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Commando%20Group%2C%20Abu%20Dhabi%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EAfrican%20Player%20of%20the%20Year%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EKatiuscia%20Yasmira%20Dias%20(GNB)%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EOceanian%20Player%20of%20the%20Year%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EAnton%20Minenko%20(AUS)%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EEuropean%20Player%20of%20the%20Year%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Rose%20El%20Sharouni%20(NED)%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ENorth%20and%20Central%20American%20Player%20of%20the%20Year%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EAlexa%20Yanes%20(USA)%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EAsian%20Player%20of%20the%20Year%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EZayed%20Al%20Katheeri%20(UAE)%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ERookie%20of%20the%20Year%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Rui%20Neto%20(BRA)Rui%20Neto%20(BRA)%3C%2Fp%3E%0A

Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.

Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.

Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.

Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.

“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.

Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.

From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.

Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.

BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.

Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.

Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.

“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.

Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.

“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.

“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”

The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”

The bio

Date of Birth: April 25, 1993
Place of Birth: Dubai, UAE
Marital Status: Single
School: Al Sufouh in Jumeirah, Dubai
University: Emirates Airline National Cadet Programme and Hamdan University
Job Title: Pilot, First Officer
Number of hours flying in a Boeing 777: 1,200
Number of flights: Approximately 300
Hobbies: Exercising
Nicest destination: Milan, New Zealand, Seattle for shopping
Least nice destination: Kabul, but someone has to do it. It’s not scary but at least you can tick the box that you’ve been
Favourite place to visit: Dubai, there’s no place like home

While you're here
Last five meetings

2013: South Korea 0-2 Brazil

2002: South Korea 2-3 Brazil

1999: South Korea 1-0 Brazil

1997: South Korea 1-2 Brazil

1995: South Korea 0-1 Brazil

Note: All friendlies

Timeline

2012-2015

The company offers payments/bribes to win key contracts in the Middle East

May 2017

The UK SFO officially opens investigation into Petrofac’s use of agents, corruption, and potential bribery to secure contracts

September 2021

Petrofac pleads guilty to seven counts of failing to prevent bribery under the UK Bribery Act

October 2021

Court fines Petrofac £77 million for bribery. Former executive receives a two-year suspended sentence 

December 2024

Petrofac enters into comprehensive restructuring to strengthen the financial position of the group

May 2025

The High Court of England and Wales approves the company’s restructuring plan

July 2025

The Court of Appeal issues a judgment challenging parts of the restructuring plan

August 2025

Petrofac issues a business update to execute the restructuring and confirms it will appeal the Court of Appeal decision

October 2025

Petrofac loses a major TenneT offshore wind contract worth €13 billion. Holding company files for administration in the UK. Petrofac delisted from the London Stock Exchange

November 2025

180 Petrofac employees laid off in the UAE

ROUTE%20TO%20TITLE
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Emergency

Director: Kangana Ranaut

Stars: Kangana Ranaut, Anupam Kher, Shreyas Talpade, Milind Soman, Mahima Chaudhry 

Rating: 2/5

DUBAI%20BLING%3A%20EPISODE%201
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ECreator%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ENetflix%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EStars%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EKris%20Fade%2C%20Ebraheem%20Al%20Samadi%2C%20Zeina%20Khoury%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%202%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Temple numbers

Expected completion: 2022

Height: 24 meters

Ground floor banquet hall: 370 square metres to accommodate about 750 people

Ground floor multipurpose hall: 92 square metres for up to 200 people

First floor main Prayer Hall: 465 square metres to hold 1,500 people at a time

First floor terrace areas: 2,30 square metres  

Temple will be spread over 6,900 square metres

Structure includes two basements, ground and first floor 

The Great Derangement: Climate Change and the Unthinkable
Amitav Ghosh, University of Chicago Press

England Test squad

Ben Stokes (captain), Joe Root, James Anderson, Jonny Bairstow, Stuart Broad, Harry Brook, Zak Crawley, Ben Foakes, Jack Leach, Alex Lees, Craig Overton, Ollie Pope, Matthew Potts

 
Updated: March 11, 2024, 4:26 PM