November 24, 2025, 3:28 p.mNovember 24, 2025, 3:28 p.m
US government advisor Massad Boulos is said to have presented “the worst paper” of all time.Image: keystone
Sudan’s ruler Abdel Fattah al-Burhan has clearly rejected a ceasefire proposal in the conflict between the army and RSF militia.
The draft submitted by US government advisor Massad Boulos was “the worst paper ever presented,” the general said at a meeting with high-ranking military officials, according to an army statement. The USA is mediating in the conflict together with Saudi Arabia, Egypt and the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
Al-Burhan seized power in Sudan in 2021 with the head of the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) militia, Mohammed Hamdan Daglo. In 2023, the RSF with tens of thousands of fighters revolted against its incorporation into the regular army and began attacks against the military and civilians. It now controls around half of Sudan’s populated area.
Army demands RSF withdrawal from all captured cities
Sudan accuses the Emirates of supporting the RSF militia with weapons since the beginning of the conflict – something UN experts and diplomats see evidence of, but which the UAE rejects. At the beginning of November, the RSF agreed to a ceasefire. But the conflict continues. According to the UN, around 40,000 people have been displaced by violence in the Kordofan region since the end of October.
“We are not supporters of war and we do not reject peace, but no one can threaten us or impose conditions on us,” al-Burhan said, according to the statement. A ceasefire is only conceivable if the RSF withdraws from all cities that it has taken since May 2023. The army is striving to retake all areas in the Darfur and Kordofan regions and to expel the militia from the country.
Criticism of the Emirates – praise for Saudi Arabia
As long as the Emirates are part of the four-party group of mediators, Sudan does not see them as neutral. The UAE is not accepted as an intermediary, said al-Burhan. At the same time, he praised Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman for his efforts. During a visit to Washington, he called on US President Donald Trump to end the war.
The RSF is accused of mass murder, rape and ethnically motivated displacement. Experts compare the situation in Darfur with the early 2000s, when the forerunners of the RSF militia were involved in the killing of up to 300,000 people there. The Sudanese army is also accused of war crimes, such as bombing civilian targets.
The UN describes the situation as the world’s largest humanitarian crisis. More than twelve million people are on the run. According to an estimate cited by the US, up to 150,000 people may have died since the conflict began in April 2023. Around 26 million people, a good half of the population, are at risk of hunger. (sda/dpa)