Political forces and movements in Sudan warned of the seriousness of the current crisis in the country and the tension between the two wings of the military component (the army and the Rapid Support Forces), and called for the completion of the political process and the final signing of the political agreement.
The Sudanese Forces for the Declaration of Freedom and Change said on Friday in a statement that the way out of the current crisis in the country lies in the completion of the political process, and indicated that they continue to communicate with the military component to resolve the crisis.
The statement pointed out that the basis of the crisis is not between the army and the rapid support, but lies in the attempts of the remnants of the former regime (the regime of former President Omar al-Bashir) to return to power and that they are ready to drag the country towards civil war.
"A series of meetings were held with the military component on the political process, the last of which was on April 8, attended by army commander Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and Rapid Support Forces commander Mohamed Hamdan Daglo (Hemedti), and reached results that were not implemented," said coalition leader Al-Wathiq al-Berir. However, our communication is ongoing and we believe that the way out of the current crisis lies in completing the political process."
Completing the political track
Al-Wathiq pledged to continue meetings to complete the political process, and referred to a meeting with the Quartet mechanism consisting of the ambassadors of Saudi Arabia, the UAE, the United States and Britain to contain the situation between the army and the Rapid Support Forces, and stressed that the real solution to the crisis can be in completing the final political agreement and establishing a civilian authority whose most important tasks are to resolve the security and economic crisis and complete the tasks of the transition.
Sudan's Congress Party called on the armed forces and the Rapid Support Forces to exercise restraint and reduce tensions and escalation immediately, warning that the security situation in the country is "fragile enough to plunge the country into chaos and civil strife".
The party believed that the right way out of the crisis was to move forward with the political process and the final signing of the political agreement.
Tensions have escalated in the past two days over a dispute between the army and the Rapid Support Forces over technical issues related to the unification of Sudan's military.
Other indicator
This comes as two sources in the Sudanese army and the Rapid Support Forces confirmed to Al Jazeera the suspension of the work of the joint military technical committee between the army and the Rapid Support Forces, which is working to address differences over the security and military reform file.
The source added that the faltering of the work of the joint committee came before recent developments and after the divergence of positions and entrenched support in its positions, and explained that the deployment in the Merowe area made it difficult to sit at the same table in light of what he described as a hostile climate.
Accusations and clarification
On Thursday, an informed source in Sudan's northern state government said the state government was surprised by the deployment of about 100 RSF military transport vehicles near Merowe airport without any previous coordination with state authorities.
The armed forces demanded that the RSF withdraw from its new area of concentration in Meroe within 24 hours, and if they did not, they would be forced to do so.
The RSF spokesperson's office said some social media outlets circulated what it called allegations that the RSF carried out hostilities towards Merowe airport.
The office explained – in a statement – that the rapid support "national forces operating within the framework of the law in full coordination and harmony with the leadership of the armed forces and the rest of the other regular forces."
He added that its presence in the northern state and the city of Meroe comes within its presence in the rest of the states, within the framework of performing its tasks and duties that extend to the desert.
The Rapid Support Forces called on all citizens and the media not to be swayed by what they described as false information aimed at spreading sedition and undermining the security and stability of the homeland, according to the statement.
The city of Merowe is located in the northern state, 360 kilometers north of the capital Khartoum, and is home to Merowe International Airport, which is one of the largest airports in the country and is also used as a military base.
The city also hosts the Sudanese army's 19th Division, which protects strategic facilities in the area, which also includes the Merowe Dam, which is 40 kilometers from the city and covers half of the country's electricity needs.
The Rapid Support Force is a fighting force led by Mohamed Hamdan Daglo (Hemedti), deputy chairman of the Transitional Sovereignty Council, established in 2013 to fight the rebels of the Darfur region (west), then to protect the borders and later maintain order, and it is affiliated with the Security and Intelligence Service, and there is no official estimate of its number, but it exceeds tens of thousands.
The parties to the political process in Sudan announced on the fifth of April that the signing of the final agreement between the parties was postponed indefinitely due to the continuation of talks between the military parties.
This is the second postponement of the signing of the agreement, which was scheduled for the sixth of April, after it was scheduled earlier in the same month, due to differences between the army and the Rapid Support.