Sudan designated 15 employees of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) embassy persona non grata and ordered them to leave the country within 48 hours, Reuters reports.
The decision was communicated to the acting UAE Chargé d’affaires, Badriya Al-Shahi, by the Sudanese foreign ministry. However, No other information was provided.
In November 2023, a senior Sudanese officer accused the UAE of supporting the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), a paramilitary group founded by deposed former dictator Omar al-Bashir, which is engaged in conflict with the army.
A UAE official responded by saying that the UAE had “consistently called for de-escalation, a ceasefire, and the initiation of diplomatic dialogue” in Sudan from the beginning of the conflict over seven months ago.
The war between the rival militaries in Sudan is growing in scope and brutality, having driven almost six million people from their homes since it erupted in April 2023, worsening an already complex humanitarian emergency, the UN refugee agency (UNHCR) warned on 7 November 2023.
READ ALSO: Sudan offers amnesty to armed groups
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, like his counterpart Colin Powell 20 years ago, announced a determination of genocide in Darfur. Blinken said the RSF and Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) committed war crimes in Sudan, including crimes against humanity, murder, rape and other forms of sexual violence, deportation or forcible transfer, and persecution, and are responsible for ethnic cleansing in Darfur.
Meanwhile, the commander of the RSF, Mohamed Dagalo, also known as Hemedti, and General Abdel Fattah Al-Burhan, the head of the Transitional Sovereign Council of the Republic of Sudan, agreed to meet in person. It is anticipated that the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) will organise the negotiations and assign a group of experienced diplomats and negotiators.
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