Rhino: Agencies – The Middle East Monitor newspaper said on Thursday that the Sudanese army misled humanitarian organizations and the international community for a long time that Zamzam camp was not facing the threat of famine, until the catastrophe occurred.
The initial response of the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) was to claim that the Zamzam camp, home to 220,000 refugees, was not at risk. This is despite reports from aid agencies confirming that the camp’s residents are in dire need of food and potable water.
The army’s call for assistance to the Zamzam camp followed a personal phone call between US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, the army commander.
Blinken expressed concern about the growing humanitarian crisis in Darfur, reiterating the need for an end to hostilities and for the parties to begin talks scheduled for 14 August in Geneva. The talks will be mediated by the United States, with Egypt, the United Nations, the African Union and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) participating as observers.
“I spoke with him about the need to address the government’s concerns before any negotiations,” Al-Burhan said.
“This concern that aid is not reaching the affected areas is offset by the Sudanese government’s keenness not to allow unmonitored aid supplies to reach the affected areas. On Wednesday, the government launched a scathing attack on the UAE, accusing it of undermining Sudan’s sovereignty by calling for the delivery of humanitarian aid across conflict lines without Port Sudan’s approval.)
In addition, with the military’s reservation, former armed groups that once fought against ousted President Omar al-Bashir are angry that they were not invited to attend the talks. This makes the possibility of the talks succeeding even more remote. The group led by Minni Arko Minawi, along with Gibril Ibrahim’s Justice and Equality Movement (JEM), joined the war in support of the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) against the RSF last November, after having been neutral.
Assistant Army Commander Yasser al-Atta, a committed member of the Islamist movement and a senior army officer, revealed on national television that al-Burhan had talked about handing over power to his deputy. This was either rhetoric for consumption or a reflection of the confidence among the leadership and ranks that the war was in its final stages.
As far as the army is concerned, the strategic decisions that will be made in the coming days will determine the direction in which the peace process will go. If there is an unwillingness to engage in meaningful dialogue at the Geneva talks, the initiative may backfire, and the Sudanese government may be seen as an obstacle to peace.
