East African force commander says deployment to Sudan ‘out of question’

ADDIS ABABA, JULY 13, 2023 (SUDANS POST) – The Joint Chief of Staff of the East African Standby Forces (EASF, Osman Abbas, has ruled out the deployment of EASF forces to Sudan, after the Sudanese government’s rejection of a regional summit’s proposal to consider deploying peacekeeping forces.

In a statement issued on Wednesday, Dr. Abbas said that the EASF regulations prohibit the deployment of forces to a country without the consent of its government.

“According to the statement issued by the Sudanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Tuesday, July 11, 2023, AD, in which Sudan affirmed its rejection of the intervention of ISAF forces, the option of deploying our forces in Sudan has become out of the question, according to EASF regulations,” Dr. Abbas said.

The Sudanese government’s rejection of the proposal to deploy peacekeeping forces comes amid a near three-month-old war between the army and the rebellious paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) led by former deputy head go the country’s transitional council.

The regional summit, which was held in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia on Monday, was attended by Ethiopia, South Sudan, Kenya and Djibouti.

The summit called for an immediate ceasefire and the deployment of East African Standby Forces to protect civilians.

The Sudanese government’s rejection of the proposal to deploy peacekeeping forces is a setback for efforts for the regional plan.