Kenya is on the receiving end for hosting Sudan’s Rapid Support Forces (RSF) and its allies in Nairobi as they work towards creating a parallel government.
- The signing of the Sudan Founding charter for establishing a parallel government took place at the Kenyatta International Convention Centre (KICC), a historical government-owned building, which did go down well with Khartoum.
- In protest, the foreign ministry of the army-backed Sudan government regretted Kenya’s move to host the group terming it a contravention of international law and different binding commitments with United Nations and the African Union.
- By hosting the group, Sudan says Kenya is endorsing a grouping which it claims has presided over massacre of civilian on ethnic basis, attacking the IDP camps, and commit acts of rape.
“Given that the stated objective of this agreement is to establish a parallel government on part of Sudanese territory, this moves promotes the dismembering of African states, violates their sovereignty, and interferes in their internal affairs,” according to a statement from Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Sudan.
Since April 2023 when the war broke out, both the Sudanese Army and Rapid Support Forces (RSF) have been accused of war crimes. The conflict has killed tens of thousands of people, uprooted more than 12 million and has created what the International Rescue Committee has called the “biggest humanitarian crisis ever recorded”.
The United States has so far sanctioned General Abdel Fattah Al-Burhan, the leader of Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and Rapid Support Forces (RSF) – Mohammed Hamdani Daglo “Hemedti” – and several companies. It sanctioned Al-Burhan for committing lethal attacks on civilians in the country and Hemedti for committing genocide in the Darfur region. The European Union has also sanctioned six people and nine companies involved in the conflict.
“The SAF’s egregious war tactics, alongside those of the RSF, are primarily responsible for one of the world’s worst humanitarian crisis, where famine has been declared in five regions of the country.,” the US Department of Treasury said in a statement.
The RSF has been accused of human rights abuses including widespread sexual violence against women and ethnically executing defenceless civilians and unarmed fighters.
Why it Matters
The diplomatic row is the latest in a series of spats between Nairobi and the SAF, which accuses Kenya of supporting the RSF. In January 2024, Khartoum recalled its ambassador to Kenya after President William Ruto hosted Gen. Hemedti, who was on shuttle diplomacy in the region and the Middle East, in Nairobi.
This followed months of back and forth where Gen Burhan questioned Ruto’s neutrality, as the war of attrition between the SAF and the RSF escalated. A year later, Nairobi’s overt support for RSF’s plans for a parallel government, at a time when the SAF has been making significant progress in retaking the capital Khartoum, is bound to further complicate efforts at mediation.
