Sudanese army delegation in Addis Ababa, but boycotts ongoing IGAD meeting

ADDIS ABABA, JULY 10, 2023 (SUDANS POST) – A delegation of the Sudanese army is in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, but has boycotted the meeting of the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) quartet countries, which is chaired by Kenya.

The delegation is demanding that Kenya be replaced as the chair of the IGAD mediation, alleging that the East African country supports rebellious Rapid Support Forces (RSF).

The Sudanese army delegation traveled to Addis Ababa, Ethiopia yesterday supposedly to participate in the meeting.

“We are boycotting the meeting because we do not believe that Kenya is impartial in its mediation efforts,” said a member of teh delegation on condition of anonymity.

“Kenya has been supporting the rebels in Sudan, and we believe that this is preventing us from reaching a peaceful resolution to the conflict,” he added.

The IGAD mediation is a regional initiative meant to find a solution to the ongoing conflict in Sudan which has been ongoing since mid-April.

The mediation is led by the IGAD quartet countries, which are Kenya, Ethiopia, South Sudan, and Djibouti.

MEETING WITH ETHIOPIAN PRIME MINISTER

The member of the delegation further told Sudans Post that they will shortly meet the Ethiopian Prime Minster Abiy Ahmed and then hold a press conference to brief the public as to why the refused to participate in the meeting.

“We will shortly meet the Ethiopian Prime Minister Dr. Abiy Ahmed and we will thank him for hosting the summit and we will then conduct a press conference to tell our people why we refused to take part in this meeting,” the official said.