The Sudanese army commander visits the recaptured headquarters and pledges to “eliminate” the Rapid Support Forces | Sudan war news

Abdel Fattah Al-Burhan visits a major military site while the head of the World Health Organization condemns the deadly attack on a hospital in the Darfur region.

Sudanese army commander Abdel Fattah al-Burhan visited the army headquarters in the capital, Khartoum, in his first appearance there since government forces announced that they had broken the siege imposed by the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces for months.

Accompanied by senior military officials on Sunday, Al-Burhan praised the “steadfastness and sacrifices” of the soldiers who defended the Army General Command for 20 months, vowing to “eliminate” the Rapid Support Forces and pursue its fighters “in every corner of Sudan.”

He also praised the ongoing operations by the Sudanese Armed Forces elsewhere in the country, including in Omdurman, Bahri and El Fasher, where violent clashes have been reported in recent days.

“Our forces are at their best,” Al-Burhan said at the headquarters, which was restored last week after being besieged by the Rapid Support Forces since the beginning of the war in April 2023.

The Sudanese Armed Forces’ announcement on Friday that it had successfully lifted the Rapid Support Forces’ siege of Khartoum and regained control of parts of the city marked a potential turning point in the nearly two-year-old war. The Rapid Support Forces denied the army’s claims, describing them as “propaganda” aimed at boosting morale.

Earlier this month, the army retook the city of Wad Madani, the capital of Al-Jazira State, which was controlled by the Rapid Support Forces. For more than a year. There are reports that military forces Alleged ethnic killings were carried out After controlling the strategic city.

The RSF has been accused of committing various violations – including the United States’ claim that it committed genocide – during the war.

Al Jazeera’s Heba Morgan from Khartoum said Burhan’s comments on Sunday suggested the general was not interested in diplomacy at this time.

She added: “Al-Burhan made it clear that he will not hold negotiations with the Rapid Support Forces, that there will be no reconciliation, and that there will be fighting until the last rebel is killed.”

“This is not the first time we have heard these words from the army commander, but regional partners and the international community have tried to seek a diplomatic solution as well. It seems that Lieutenant General Al-Burhan is choosing a military victory now, especially since the army has been able in the past few weeks to regain control over more territory.” .

Attack on the hospital “crowded with patients”

This appearance comes at a time when the Director-General of the World Health Organization condemned the attack that killed dozens of people in a hospital in El Fasher in the Darfur region.

The attack late on Friday targeted the Saudi Hospital, the main hospital in the besieged area. It was not immediately clear who carried out the attack. A local official said that the Rapid Support Forces carried out a drone strike.

at least 70 people were killed and 19 injuredWHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus confirmed on Sunday.

“At the time of the attack, the hospital was overwhelmed with patients receiving care,” Tedros said in a post on X.

Saudi Arabia condemned the attack and described it as a “violation of international law and international humanitarian law.”

Local groups and international human rights groups have previously reported this Attacks on displacement camps and other facilities The Rapid Support Forces caused the death and injury of civilians.

More than 5,000 people have been killed or wounded since the Rapid Support Forces began their attempt to take control of El Fasher last May, according to local authorities.

Amjad Farid Al-Tayeb from the Fikra Center for Research Studies and Development said that Al-Fasher is the largest city and has the largest operating airport in the Darfur region. It is the last major area in the region controlled by the army.

“The Rapid Support Forces are trying to seize El Fasher in order to pave the way for declaring its own government with its allies,” Al-Tayeb told Al Jazeera.

“What the RSF and its allies want is full control of Darfur in order to form a government, leaving Sudan with a model similar to what happened in Libya.”

Al-Tayeb also expressed his concern about the pattern of attacks launched by the Rapid Support Forces since January 15, which targeted specific targets. Water dams, power plants and oil refineries.