Sudan’s El Burhan accuses Quartet of ‘seeking to divide Sudan’

Head of the Sovereignty Council and Commander-in-Chief of the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF), Lt Gen Abdelfattah El Burhan, has launched a fierce attack on the Quartet and the US’s Senior Advisor for Arab and African Affairs Massad Boulos, accusing them of trying to dismantle Sudan’s armed forces and break up the country.

Speaking during a press briefing yesterday, El Burhan charged that the Quartet, comprising the United States, Saudi Arabia, the United Kingdom and the United Arab Emirates, “seeks to divide Sudan, abolish the army and dissolve the security services.”

El Burhan praised the role of Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, describing him as “the voice of truth and the voice of the region.” He said Sudanese people affected by the war “look with satisfaction and appreciation at the efforts of the Saudi crown prince,” adding that Saudi mediation represents “an opportunity to spare the country destruction.”

The SAF chief claimed he personally clarified “the true picture of what is going on in Sudan” to US President Donald Trump. Speaking at the U.S.-Saudi Investment Forum last week, Trump announced that he would personally intervene to help end the war, saying the decision followed a request from Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.

Trump told the audience: “I thought it was just something that was crazy and out of control. But I just see how important that is to you [Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman] and to a lot of your friends in the room.”

Burhan said the SAF will cooperate with the Saudi initiative “in the ideal way that comforts all Sudanese,” stressing that previous mediation efforts had been rejected because they allowed the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) to remain “in the scene.”

Criticism of Quartet

El Burhan dismissed the Quartet’s proposals, arguing they contradict Sudan’s sacrifices and the military’s role. He said the army submitted its own road map demanding the RSF withdraw from all areas captured since the Jeddah Declaration. According to him, the Quartet ignored this and instead put forward a “worst” proposal to dissolve the army and security services while keeping the RSF, a move he warned would render the mediation “non-neutral.”

He also accused Massad Boulos of acting like an enforcer for foreign powers. “Boulos talks to us as if he wants to impose things on us, and we fear he will be an obstacle to peace,” Burhan claimed, adding that Boulos “keeps threatening us and accusing us of obstructing aid and using chemical weapons, as if he wants to impose things.”

El Burhan further accused the envoy of “speaking in the language of the UAE,” claiming his positions matched those of the RSF and its allies.

“We consider the Quartet unacceptable because of the presence of the Emirates,” El Burhan declared. He also rejected claims that the army is controlled by the Muslim Brotherhood.

Army sets conditions

The SAF leader dismissed the possibility of political compromises. “No one accepts this or accepts the existence of the [RSF] and their supporters,” he said, accusing the RSF of using ceasefires to “mobilise and besiege cities.”

“We will not accept half-measures,” he insisted, adding that his government would not allow former Prime Minister Abdallah Hamdok or RSF leader Lt Gen Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo (Hemedti) “to be imposed on Sudan.”

He laid out conditions for a ceasefire, including a complete RSF withdrawal from cities captured after the Jeddah Agreement, naming Zalingei, El Geneina, El Fasher and Nyala, followed by RSF cantonment in designated areas. 

Only then, he said, could Sudanese hold a national dialogue to determine the country’s political future.

Vowing to continue the war if these conditions are not met, El Burhan pledged: “We will retake Darfur and Kordofan and expel the Rapid Support Forces.”