Senior sources in the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) have denied any coordination with the United Nations or General al-Burhan’s army (SAF) regarding a reported one-week truce in El-Fasher, calling it a unilateral step by Burhan aimed at easing growing military pressure on his forces.
Speaking to Erem News, RSF officials dismissed reports that Burhan had agreed to the truce at the UN’s request, insisting no such communication had taken place. “There is no agreement, and no dialogue with the United Nations,” one source said. “This is a unilateral announcement meant to buy time.”
Port Sudan junta media claimed Burhan had accepted a limited ceasefire to allow humanitarian access into El-Fasher, the last remaining SAF stronghold in Darfur. The RSF, which now controls all other Darfur states, has encircled the city, capturing much of its center and threatening the SAF’s military division based in Port Sudan.
Observers suggest the ceasefire offer is a tactical pause to allow re-supply of SAF forces under siege. RSF advisor Al-Basha Tibeaq said on X that Burhan’s real motive is to “deliver food and ammunition” to his encircled troops. “This has nothing to do with humanitarian aid,” he wrote.
Tibeaq accused SAF-aligned forces of using civilians as human shields and obstructing evacuation routes established by the Sudan Founding Alliance Forces, Tasis, which are aligned with the RSF. He called on the UN and humanitarian agencies to coordinate directly with RSF-aligned authorities operating in secure areas outside El-Fasher, and to “reject dangerous and deceptive ceasefire offers.”
According to local sources, the humanitarian toll in El-Fasher continues to worsen. Hundreds of thousands of civilians have reportedly fled north to areas under Sudan Founding Alliance control, where relief camps have been set up. Only a few thousand people remain trapped in the city, allegedly held by SAF fighters, allied armed movements, and hastily mobilized militia groups.
The SAF has relied on airdrops to sustain its forces in El-Fasher. However, the RSF claims its acquisition of advanced anti-aircraft systems has largely neutralized SAF air operations in the area.
In a recent address, RSF leader Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, known as Hemedti, reiterated his commitment to providing humanitarian assistance across Darfur and Kordofan, and called for international aid coordination in areas under RSF control.
