Officials of the Sudan’s Rapid Support Forces have officially signed a charter in Nairobi to establish a parallel government.
The signed charter paves the way for the RSF to govern rebel-held areas advocating for a secular state and a unified national army.
The signing of the charter was confirmed by signatories Al-Hadi Idris and Ibrahim Al-Mirghani, who disclosed the development to Reuters.
Sudan’s RSF sign charter in Nairobi, Kenya to form a parallel government. Photo: Courtesy.
According to the charter, the signatories agreed that Sudan should be a secular, democratic, non-centralised state with a unified national army, though it also upheld the right of armed groups to continue existing.
The charter moreover stated that the government did not exist to split the country but rather to unify it and to end the war, tasks it said the army-aligned government operating out of Port Sudan had failed to do.
The signing ceremony was attended by Abdelaziz al-Hilu, a powerful rebel leader who controls vast swathes of territory and troops in South Kordofan state.
Abdelaziz al-Hilu has also for so long demanded that Sudan embrace secularism.
The decision to host the RSF in Nairobi has sparked criticism from diplomatic policy analysts and the Sudanese government.
Last week, Sudan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs condemned President William Ruto’s administration for allegedly hosting the RSF.
