Sudan calls for RSF to be classified as terrorist group at Russia-Africa partnership forum

Sudan has called for the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) to be classified as a terrorist group and held accountable for its actions against Sudanese citizens. Khartoum pointed the finger at the United Arab Emirates (UAE), accusing the Gulf nation of providing funding and weapons to the group.

Sudan made the appeal at the Russia-Africa Partnership Forum on Saturday. Ministers from more than 50 African countries met with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov in Cairo at the forum’s second Ministerial Conference.

Representatives from several African and regional organizations were also in attendance, according to a statement by the Egyptian Foreign Ministry.

Sudan’s Minister of Cabinet Affairs took the opportunity to call for support in isolating the RSF, who have been fighting the Sudanese Armed Forces for more than two years.

“Sudan calls for this group (the Rapid Support Forces) to be classified as a terrorist group and held accountable for the crimes it has committed,” Dr. Lamia Abdel Ghaffar told the Forum. “And for its well-known regional sponsor (the UAE) to be held accountable for funding it with money and weapons, and providing it with political, diplomatic and media support, thus becoming complicit in all the crimes committed against Sudanese citizens.”

Earlier this month, the United Kingdom sanctioned four RSF commanders it accused of having committed mass killings, sexual violence, and deliberate attacks on civilians in the Darfur city of El Fasher. But the UK did not issue sanctions against the United Arab Emirates, which has long been accused of providing support to the RSF.

The United Nations and United States have also accused the group of committing serious human rights violations during its takeover of El Fasher earlier this year.

A power struggle between the military and the RSF erupted into war in April 2023. The conflict has killed 40,000 people — though some rights groups say the death toll is significantly higher — and has created the world’s worst humanitarian crisis with over 14 million displaced. Many areas have experienced famine and disease.

Russia-Africa partnership

The Russia-Africa Partnership Forum is aimed at deepening political and economic ties between Russia and the African continent. It gained momentum after its 2023 summit in St. Petersburg, when President Vladimir Putin sought to garner the support of African leaders to break the political and economic isolation imposed on Moscow by Western countries, following its war on Ukraine.