Sudan.. Death Sentence Issued Against Hemetti and the Defense Council Welcomes Mediation Efforts

SadaNews - The Sudanese Security and Defense Council confirmed that the government is open to any initiatives aimed at preserving the unity of the country, its sovereignty, and the integrity of its territories, while a Sudanese court issued a absentia death sentence against the Rapid Support Forces commander, Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo (Hemetti).

This announcement comes after the regular meeting of the Council held yesterday, Sunday, which is the highest security body in Sudan, chaired by the head of the Sudanese Sovereignty Council, Abdel Fattah al-Burhan. It includes the members of the Sovereignty Council, the Prime Minister, and the Ministers of Finance, Defense, Interior, and Justice, and is responsible for discussing national security issues.

In a statement, the Council welcomed mediation efforts aimed at ending the conflict in Sudan, emphasizing at the same time that it has provided a response to an American proposal for a roadmap to stop the war, without disclosing any details.

The United States had proposed a 90-day humanitarian ceasefire between the army and the Rapid Support Forces, followed by the initiation of security arrangements in preparation for a permanent ceasefire in Sudan.

Two official sources in the Sudanese government told Anadolu Agency last Friday that the Sudanese government provided its response to an American proposal for a roadmap to stop the war titled "Restoring Peace in Sudan," conditional on the withdrawal of the Rapid Support Forces from all cities they controlled.

Death Sentence

On another note, a Sudanese court in Port Sudan issued an absentia death sentence yesterday, Sunday, against the commander of the Rapid Support Forces and others, accusing them of committing crimes against humanity and genocide, at a time when the war between the army and the Rapid Support Forces entered its fourth year.

This ruling is the first against Dagalo since the outbreak of the war and comes amid accusations against him, along with his brothers Abdel Rahim and Al-Qonni Dagalo and 13 others, of committing massacres in the city of El Geneina, which resulted in the death of 15,000 of the city's inhabitants, including the Governor of West Darfur, according to the judge's recitation of the ruling published by the Sudanese official news agency.

The court directed the international police (Interpol) to contact the countries where the condemned individuals are located for their extradition.

Burhan had issued a decision in August 2024 to form a committee to investigate the crimes of the Rapid Support Forces, chaired by the Attorney General, and the committee presented the case to the court in 2025.

The war has divided Sudan into spheres of influence, with the army controlling the east and north of the country, while the Rapid Support Forces control Darfur in the west and areas in Kordofan in the south.

A Disaster for Children

On the humanitarian front, the United Nations announced on Sunday that 825,000 children under the age of five will suffer from severe malnutrition due to the conflict in Sudan, exposing them to the risk of death if they do not receive timely treatment.

The humanitarian crisis in Sudan is worsening due to the war between the army and the Rapid Support Forces, stemming from a dispute over unifying the military institution.

On July 10, the World Health Organization stated that Sudan is currently experiencing the largest humanitarian crisis in the world, with more than 33 million people in need of assistance, including 21 million people in need of health services.

The war broke out between the Sudanese army, led by Burhan, and the Rapid Support Forces, led by Hemetti, Burhan's former deputy, in April 2023, resulting in tens of thousands of deaths and millions of displaced people, causing the worst humanitarian crisis in the world.