Burhan Delivers “Victory Speech,” Unveiling the Features of the Next Phase

Khartoum – Sudanhorizon
The Chairman of the Transitional Sovereign Council, Lieutenant General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, has unveiled the political features of the next phase.

In his speech on Friday, commemorating the 72nd anniversary of the founding of the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF), Burhan appeared to be delivering a final victory speech over the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) militia.

Burhan expressed deepest gratitude to the brotherly and friendly nations that supported Sudan and its people in their just cause and backed its legitimate institutions. He also thanked the entire Sudanese people, the Armed Forces and its units, the Intelligence Service, the Police, the Joint Forces and their supporters, the Popular Resistance, the Sudan Shield, the Support Forces and Battalions, and the “Qashn” forces.

Al-Burhan did not forget to thank “our brothers in the executive branch, ministries, and various state institutions, who are bearing with us the harsh aftermath and consequences of the war,” and the civil support committees in services, hospices, and shelters,” promising everyone that “we will all move forward together under the banner of Sudan, protected by the banner of the Army – Allah – the Nation.”

The Chairman of the Transitional Sovereign Council and Commander-in-Chief of the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) has affirmed that “the unified support of the Sudanese people for their forces and army has greatly facilitated overcoming many challenges and increased the burden and responsibility of moving forward in defending and protecting this nation and confronting all those who attempt to harm its resources.”

Al-Burhan renewed the pledge “that SAF will remain the army of Sudan, fulfilling its constitutional duty to protect the Sudanese nation and the Sudanese homeland without allegiance to any party or submission to any will other than the will of the people. We assure you that we are proceeding with the complete cleansing of Sudanese soil from the abhorrent rebellion of the terrorist Dagalo militia. They and their supporters are doomed.”

Al-Burhan pointed out that the government and SAF have been striving for peace since the early months of the rebellion, despite our “sincere determination and clear commitment to fighting and defeating the rebel militia,” he said, explaining that the armed forces will not accept “a flawed peace or a peace that returns criminals, murderers, the Dagalo militia, and their supporters to power or allows them to participate in it.”

Referring to the Jeddah track, which began two weeks after the outbreak of war, Burhan said that their position “has been clear since May 2023: the path to peace begins with this militia laying down its arms and gathering in designated areas, allowing citizens to return to their homes, and restoring normalcy with the provision of services, security, protection, and oversight. Only then will the issue of non-criminal fighters be addressed.”

Regarding the future of political action and the civilian transition, the Chairman of the Sovereignty Council said that he intends to involve “the national and sectoral forces that supported the Sudanese state and its unity in completing the state’s governing institutions (the Legislative Council), which is a constitutional entitlement,” in fairness to them. He noted that these forces “along with the armed forces and all the Sudanese people have paid a heavy price and stood shoulder to shoulder with the armed forces despite the sharp political divisions and intellectual extremism surrounding various contentious issues in Sudan.

In a clear confirmation of what several news outlets, including Sudanhorizon, had previously reported regarding the anticipated Sudanese dialogue, the Chairman of the Sovereign Council stated that “a national group of Sudanese men and women spontaneously convened to launch an initiative based on the firm conviction that overcoming this ordeal can only be achieved through a purely Sudanese dialogue, originating from within, encompassing all political and social forces, and placing the suffering of the citizen and their right to peace at the forefront of its objectives.”
He added that this group “presented its vision for operating as an independent national mechanism to facilitate a comprehensive Sudanese dialogue aimed at achieving a broad national consensus that will put our country on the path to stability.”
He further stated that he met with this group, “which reviewed its vision, emphasized its independence and openness to all, and requested a set of necessary guarantees from the state to ensure the convening of the dialogue, facilitate the participation of its participants, and protect their safety. The state agreed to these guarantees.”

In his address, Burhan explained the type and nature of the required guarantees, including safeguarding the participants in the dialogue from legal repercussions would be avoided, adding that “the purpose of this immunity is to guarantee the freedom and candor of the dialogue, and to enable participants to express their opinions and positions without fear that their participation in the dialogue or what they say during the deliberations become a source of legal accountability.”
He considered that the success of the dialogue “does not depend solely on providing guarantees to the participants, but also requires creating a general climate of freedoms, which allows citizens and political and social forces, including those not directly participating in the dialogue sessions, to freely express their opinions and positions on the issues under discussion. The national dialogue should not be a closed process limited to the parties sitting at the table, but rather it must take place in an open public space that allows society to interact with it, express opinions on its topics and outcomes, and criticize or support them without fear or restriction.”

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