Sudan's army chief, Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, has vowed to retake "every inch" of territory held by the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), ruling out negotiations to end a war now in its third-and-a-half year.
According to the Sudan News Agency, al-Burhan made the remarks on Tuesday while speaking at a gathering in Village 5 in the Merowe area of northern Sudan. He said the "military option" would continue until the RSF is driven out of Sudan.
The Sudanese army and the RSF have been fighting since April 2023, after leaders of the two forces disagreed over plans to integrate the paramilitary group into the regular armed forces. The conflict has killed tens of thousands of people and displaced around 13 million, according to United Nations and international estimates.
Al-Burhan's pledge to keep fighting came as a local charity reported that 10 civilians were killed and others wounded in an RSF attack in West Kordofan state.
In a statement, the Dar Hamar Emergency Committee accused the RSF of carrying out multiple abuses against civilians in Abu Ajal village, in the countryside southeast of En Nahud. The RSF is massing forces in West Kordofan as the Sudanese army advances on the towns of En Nahud and Al Khuway following gains in neighboring North Kordofan state.
In Blue Nile state, more than 5,500 people have fled their villages over three days as security conditions deteriorate, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) said on Tuesday.
Meanwhile, an envoy for U.S. President Donald Trump said the parties in Sudan must take the lead in talks to end the war. In a post on X on Monday, Massad Boulos, the senior U.S. adviser for Arab and African affairs, said peace could be achieved "through a comprehensive, Sudanese-owned and Sudanese-led national dialogue toward a civilian-led government."
The U.S. State Department said last month that both the Sudanese Armed Forces and the RSF, along with their leaders, "do not represent a constitutional, legitimate authority for Sudan."
