Sudan army chief survives assassination attempt
Hopes for Sudan’s 15-month-long civil war to come to an end may have been thrown to the wind as the Sudanese government have now decided to walk away from U.S. co-sponsored peace talks in Geneva in August.
Reuters and agencies reported that Sudan’s Army Chief General Abdel Fattah Al-Burhan, whilst attending a graduation ceremony at Gilbeit army base, survived an assassination attempt which resulted in 5 casualties on July 31st.
The drone strike took place 100 kilometres from the army’s de facto capital, Port Sudan, situated in the country’s Red Sea state. Witnesses confirmed that the military leader was at the base during the attack.
Official sources announced that Al-Burhan remained in the area before returning to the base to speak to troops, a marked difference from earlier reports that stated he left for Port Sudan.
“We will not retreat, we will not give up, and we will not negotiate with any entity”, said Al-Burhan to his troops following the attempt on his life.
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“We do not fear drones, we only die when God has planned,” said the army chief.
Sudanese Armed Forces released footage of Al-Burhan surrounded by crowds of cheering civilians, chanting “One army, one people” after the graduation ceremony at Gilbeit.
The Rapid Support Forces (RSF), currently fighting the Sudanese army, has denied responsibility for the latest attack.
Drone strikes have been a common occurrence on military targets near Port Sudan, with the last two days seeing Kosti, Rabak and Kenana all being hit in Sudan’s southern White Nile State. According to locals, areas north of the capital in Al-Damer have also been struck.
The RSF has not commented on any of these drone attacks in the last couple of months.
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Reuters has verified a video shared on social media, which shows soldiers marching in uniform in a graduation ceremony before a whirring sound is heard before the sound of an explosion.
“We heard sounds of explosions all of a sudden and everyone ran scared,” stated an eyewitness among the many civilians who attended the ceremony as part of many families seeing graduating officers.
The Sudanese Civil War started in April 2023 following plans to integrate the RSF and regular army under a political transition towards elections. Sudan now faces the world’s largest humanitarian crisis, which sees half of the country’s population thrown into starvation whilst also pushing 10 million out of their homes.
Both parties have been accused of committing war crimes on civilian populations, with Human Rights Watch reporting widespread acts of rape and sexual violence in the capital Khartoum.
Reuters and agencies
