Rapid Support Forces commander Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, known as Hemedti, has reportedly decided to withdraw thousands of RSF personnel deployed in Saudi Arabia as part of the Arab coalition, according to sources cited by Darfur24.
The reported decision has not yet been publicly confirmed by the RSF leadership or the Sudan Founding Alliance (TASIS).
Sources familiar with the deployment told Darfur24 that Dagalo remained committed to the withdrawal despite attempts by several coalition members to persuade him to reconsider.
According to the report, RSF commanders in Saudi Arabia have already begun preparations for the move, with troops withdrawing from some forward positions and regrouping at two camps while awaiting a response from the Arab coalition leadership.
Darfur24 said consultations were under way among coalition members in an effort to convince Dagalo to reverse the decision.
The RSF has participated in Arab coalition operations connected to the Yemen conflict since 2017. Its personnel were initially deployed in southern Yemen before some units were subsequently stationed in Dhahran and Najran in Saudi Arabia.
After Sudan’s war erupted in April 2023, representatives of the Sudanese Armed Forces and the RSF reportedly held discussions with the Arab coalition command over the status of their respective contingents.
According to Darfur24’s sources, coalition officials told both sides that their personnel would continue to be treated as Sudanese forces irrespective of the conflict between them inside Sudan.
The report said more than 70 RSF personnel had been killed and hundreds wounded during operations along the Saudi-Yemeni border over the past three years.
Around 5,000 RSF personnel are currently believed to be deployed in Saudi Arabia, according to the sources, although that figure has not been independently verified.
Some personnel are reportedly reluctant to leave because of salaries and financial benefits associated with the deployment, with Darfur24’s sources claiming that payments for some members exceed $5,000 per month.
The report also raised the possibility that some RSF personnel could refuse the withdrawal order and join Sudanese army contingents stationed elsewhere in Saudi Arabia, although its sources described that scenario as unlikely.
If the withdrawal proceeds, Darfur24 reported that some of the forces could ultimately be redeployed to neighbouring countries, including South Sudan or Ethiopia.
Neither the RSF nor TASIS had publicly confirmed the reported withdrawal at the time of publication.
