Sudan severs engagement with IGAD over RSF chief invitation

PORT SUDAN – The Sudanese government has severed its engagement with the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) regarding its ongoing peace efforts in the war-torn nation. This comes in response to perceived violations by the regional bloc.

In a statement issued this afternoon and seen by Sudans Post, Sudan’s foreign ministry spokesperson confirmed the decision conveyed to IGAD through the Djiboutian foreign minister, who also chairs the IGAD Ministerial Council.

The war-torn country expressed dissatisfaction with IGAD’s leadership, citing several grievances, including the invitation of the commander of the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), Mohammed Hamdan Daglo, to a meeting scheduled for Thursday in Entebbe, Uganda.

“This decision comes in light of the violations committed by the organization’s presidency,” the statement reads. “by involving the situation in Sudan in the agenda of the forty-second extraordinary summit of IGAD heads of state and government scheduled to be held in the Ugandan capital, Kampala, on Thursday, January 18, 2024, without consulting Sudan.”

The statement also criticizes the invitation to Daglo, deeming it “a serious precedent in the history of IGAD and regional and international organizations.”

Sudan concludes by calling this “a serious breach of the IGAD charters and rules,” emphasizing its view of the actions as a violation of its sovereignty.

This development follows IGAD’s invitation of Daglo to a meeting set for Thursday in Ugandan, where he first appeared abroad last month since the start of the war in April 2023.

Government sources in Port Sudan told Sudans Post following the statement this afternoon that the Sudanese government formally requested the invitation’s withdrawal, which IGAD subsequently denied, prompting Sudan’s drastic response.

IGAD has yet to comment on Sudan’s latest position, which is likely to spark criticism from anti-war groups abroad.

The Sudanese government has previously accused these groups of collaborating with the RSF, a paramilitary force formerly allied with the military during conflicts in western and southern Sudan.