These talks come as Sudan faces one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises. Although diplomats from Saudi Arabia, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates, the African Union, and the United Nations attended, Sudan’s military did not send representatives, and the presence of RSF delegates at Wednesday’s session remains uncertain.
U.S. Special Envoy for Sudan Tom Perriello shared a joint statement on social media, highlighting efforts to support humanitarian access and cease hostilities, but RSF members were notably absent in the accompanying photos.
The war in Sudan started in April last year when tensions between the military and the RSF erupted into violence in the capital, Khartoum, before spreading across the country. The RSF, which emerged from Janjaweed fighters under former President Omar al-Bashir, has been accused of war crimes during the Darfur conflict.
Despite calls for both parties to engage in negotiations, Sudan’s military leader, Gen. Abdel-Fattah Burhan, refused to discuss a ceasefire until the RSF stopped seizing civilian homes.
He accused the RSF of pretending to seek peace while continuing acts of war. Burhan recently survived a drone attack during an army graduation ceremony, though the RSF did not claim responsibility.
The conflict has resulted in thousands of deaths, widespread starvation, and atrocities such as mass rape and ethnically motivated killings, which the U.N. and international rights groups classify as war crimes.
Sudan’s war has also created the world’s largest displacement crisis, forcing over 10.7 million people from their homes, with more than 2 million fleeing to neighboring countries.
Last month, experts confirmed that famine has gripped a massive camp for displaced people in Darfur, and more than half of Sudan’s population, or 25.6 million people, are expected to face acute hunger.