Sudan army insists on full RSF pullout from all cities before accepting ceasefire
Sudan’s military has said it will only fully accept a US-backed peace proposal if the RSF withdraws from all cities it has occupied since May 2023.
Sudan’s military has said it will only fully accept a US-backed peace proposal if the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) withdraw from all cities it has occupied since May 2023, according to documents seen by Reuters. The US plan proposes an immediate 90-day humanitarian ceasefire, followed by negotiations on a permanent truce and a transition to civilian-led elections. It also calls for a UN-supervised mechanism to support limited RSF withdrawals from key conflict areas, including North Darfur and North Kordofan.
While the army accepted most of the proposal, it rejected the idea of only partial withdrawals, insisting on a complete RSF exit from all occupied urban areas. The RSF said it welcomed the proposal and had submitted a written response. The conflict, which began in April 2023, has killed hundreds of thousands, displaced millions and triggered widespread hunger and disease, with previous peace efforts failing to end the war.
The Nigerian stake is clear. Sudan’s conflict has regional implications. The Sahel is already destabilised by jihadist insurgencies, and the collapse of Sudan could create a new front for extremism. Nigerian troops have participated in peacekeeping missions in Darfur in the past, and the country has a strategic interest in preventing the conflict from spreading.
From a Nigerian vantage point, the army’s demand for a full RSF withdrawal is a reminder that Sudan’s conflict is far from over. The international community has struggled to broker a lasting peace, and the army’s position suggests that the war will continue. Nigeria must prepare for the regional consequences.
This mirrors the 2005 Comprehensive Peace Agreement, which ended Sudan’s north-south civil war but failed to resolve the underlying tensions. The mechanism then was different, but the result was the same: a fragile peace that eventually collapsed.
The winners: none. The losers: the people of Sudan, who continue to suffer, and the international community, which has failed to stop the war.
Bottom Line: The army wants a full RSF withdrawal. The RSF wants a ceasefire. The people of Sudan want peace. They are not getting it.