A senior commander in the Sudan Liberation Movement led by Transitional Government Presidential Council member Taher Abubakr Hajar has confirmed that his forces took part in combat operations alongside the Rapid Support Forces in the city of El Fasher. This comes after the joint Darfur armed movements announced that they were ending their neutrality, with some factions joining General al-Burhan’s army (SAF).
The joint forces had officially declared in November 2023 that they would remain neutral, refraining from combat against the RSF, with Hajar, Al-Hadi Idris and Suleiman Sandal publicly committing to this stance at the time.
In a meeting with dozens of residents in northern Katum, Major General Ahmed Abdullah Bashir Abu Tanga, chief of staff of the movement, said their involvement in the fighting was “for justice and equality among the Sudanese people,” despite significant losses sustained by their forces.
Abu Tanga, in a video shared by Taher Hajar on X, noted that remaining neutral would have helped protect El Fasher and other Darfur states from destruction to infrastructure.
He added that the movement fought in El Fasher for two years with the aim of “dismantling the National Congress Party and its affiliates,” accusing the party of controlling the country through the appointment of military and state leaders and exploiting agricultural and livestock resources without providing services to citizens.
The meeting was attended by leaders of the local administration from the Zaghawa tribe in areas including Anka, Donki, Ashim, Um Marahik and Bredik, highlighting the growing discussion about the role of armed movements in the ongoing Darfur conflict.
