Al-Burhan held unannounced consultations on the national dialogue in Sudan
Sudanese Army Commander Abdel Fattah al-Burhan held unannounced consultations with political figures and civil society representatives regarding preparations for a nationwide dialogue. Participants in the discussions agreed on practical steps to create the conditions for a conference of Sudanese political forces, Al Jazeera English reports, citing informed political sources.
Among the proposed steps are an end to negative media campaigns against political opponents, as well as a suspension of charges carrying the death penalty. According to the sources, this applies to dozens of opponents of the military-led Transitional Sovereign Council, primarily representatives of the “Somud” alliance led by former Prime Minister Abdullah Hamdok.
As Al Jazeera notes, Hamdok and other politicians associated with “Somud” are accused of war crimes, inciting war against the state, and undermining the constitution. The alliance has also been accused of supporting the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces, though “Somud” denies this.
To organize the conference, plans are in place to select a preparatory committee composed of independent and widely recognized experts. According to sources, the committee is to determine the participants, agenda, venue, and date of the conference, as well as invite international and regional representatives to serve as observers.
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Hatem al-Sir, an adviser to the chairman of the Democratic Unionist Party—Original, stated that active political consultations are underway in Khartoum with the support of regional forces. According to him, al-Burhan met with leaders of political blocs, heads of traditional local administrations, leaders of Sufi orders, independent national figures, scholars, experts, and representatives of resistance committees.
At the same time, the Quintet—comprising the UN, the African Union, the European Union, the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD), and the League of Arab States—is attempting to agree on a format for the national dialogue. The latest round of talks, which began on July 29 in Addis Ababa, failed to bridge the differences between Sudanese political forces. Several groups, including “Somud,” did not participate.
A representative of “Somud,” Babiker Faisal, criticized the Quintet’s consultations, stating that most of their participants support the military. At the same time, leaders of the National Congress Party—which was in power under President Omar al-Bashir until his ouster in 2018—opposed the party’s exclusion from the political process. Al-Burhan stated that the political group “Tasis,” which is linked to the Rapid Support Forces, and the National Congress Party would not be included in the dialogue.
