Sudan's army chief Gen Abdel Fattah Al Burhan has pledged to fight on in the country until the Rapid Support Forces are defeated or surrender, and offered amnesty to “misled” fighters who took up arms against the armed forces.
Gen Al Burhan also pledged to transform the army into a “smart” force that relies on science and technology, despite several calls by the US and international community for an end to the war.
“We have no option except to fight the battle until the end or until the enemy surrenders or is defeated,” he told graduating officers at a ceremony on Monday. “We will continue the battle of dignity until the mutinous and terrorist militia is vanquished and the nation is cleansed.”
The armed forces and the RSF have been locked in a devastating civil war since April 2023, when tension between Gen Al Burhan and the paramilitary commander Gen Mohamed Dagalo over their future in a democratic Sudan boiled over into violence that began in Khartoum but soon spread to other parts of the vast Afro-Arab nation of 50 million.
Viewed by most Sudanese as a struggle for domination, the war has killed tens of thousands and created the world's biggest humanitarian and displacement crises, with at least 12 million Sudanese fleeing their homes and nearly half the population in need of aid to survive.
“The armed forces have no enmity with anyone who took up arms as a result of incitement or misleading information; and we welcome anyone who chooses to stand by the side of the country,” he said.
“The door is open to anyone who states a genuine desire to return to the correct side,” he declared without giving further details.
Gen Al Burhan has repeatedly stated his resolve to carry on fighting until victory, but his comments on Monday came as the international community is increasing efforts to pause the war and launch a political process that does not include the army or the RSF.
Widely suspected of harbouring presidential ambitions, Gen Al Burhan has consistently rejected peace proposals that accord legitimacy to the RSF or place the paramilitary on equal footing with the army.
He has also rejected road maps that curtail the powers of the military, whose generals ruled Sudan for most of the 70 years since independence, or are perceived to be an interference in the country's domestic affairs.
His latest comments follow last week's call by Massad Boulos, the US senior adviser for Arab and African affairs, on the army and the RSF to immediately and unconditionally accept a humanitarian truce and the launch of a political process leading to a civilian government. Mr Boulous renewed his statements on Monday evening, posting them in Arabic on his X account.
The Sudanese Foreign Ministry's response to Mr Boulous' call came on Monday night as a thinly veiled rejection.
“We would like to make clear that floating or presenting any proposals does not necessarily mean that the Sudanese government accepts or agrees to it,” it said. “Any proposals that don't consider the country's supreme interests will not be agreed to by the government and consequently will not be implemented.
“While noting the proposals and visions of friends and partners, the Sudanese government will not accept interference in its domestic affairs or attempts to impose blueprints or proposals that run against the nation's supreme interests or sovereignty.”
Nearly three years into the Sudan war, the army controls the capital Khartoum as well as the central, eastern and northern regions. The RSF has seized the entire western region of Darfur and parts of neighbouring Kordofan.
Both sides have their own governments, with the military-backed administration sitting in Port Sudan on the Red Sea and Khartoum. The RSF is based in Nyala in Darfur.
Both sides are accused of war crimes, with the RSF charged with ethnically motivated massacres in Darfur and the army facing accusations of indiscriminate shelling and unlawful detentions of non-combatants.
Chad closed its border with Sudan on Monday after weekend clashes in the border town of Tine killed five Chadian soldiers.
