RSF Leader Hemedti Calls for Replacement of Sudan’s Army Leadership

An image grab taken from a handout video posted on the Sudanese paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) page on Twitter, rebranded as X, on July 28, 2023 shows its commander Mohamed Hamdan Daglo addressing RSF fighters at an undisclosed location. (Rapid Support Forces / AFP)
An image grab taken from a handout video posted on the Sudanese paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) page on Twitter, rebranded as X, on July 28, 2023 shows its commander Mohamed Hamdan Daglo addressing RSF fighters at an undisclosed location. (Rapid Support Forces / AFP)
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RSF Leader Hemedti Calls for Replacement of Sudan’s Army Leadership

An image grab taken from a handout video posted on the Sudanese paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) page on Twitter, rebranded as X, on July 28, 2023 shows its commander Mohamed Hamdan Daglo addressing RSF fighters at an undisclosed location. (Rapid Support Forces / AFP)
An image grab taken from a handout video posted on the Sudanese paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) page on Twitter, rebranded as X, on July 28, 2023 shows its commander Mohamed Hamdan Daglo addressing RSF fighters at an undisclosed location. (Rapid Support Forces / AFP)

Sudanese paramilitary leader General Mohamed Hamdan Daglo, known as Hemedti, called for the replacement of army leadership on Friday in his first on-camera appearance since fighting broke out.

The fighting, broke out in April as the Sudanese army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) vied for power amid a planned transition towards civilian rule, has led to the displacement of more than 3 million people and thrown the country into one of the world's worst humanitarian crises.

At least 580 civilians have been killed just in Khartoum, the capital, according to local volunteers, a Reuters tally found.

The video of Hemedti was posted to the paramilitary group's Facebook page showing him surrounded by cheering members of the RSF, as he apologized to the Sudanese people for the impact of the ongoing conflict.

"We tell our brothers in the armed forces, if you want a quick solution ... change your leadership and we'll come to an agreement in 72 hours."

Hemedti also warned that Ahmed Haroun, an ex-official under former President Omar al-Bashir who escaped from prison in late April, was leading the security committee in eastern parts of the country where the army is in control.

In previous audio messages, Hemedti has accused the army of taking orders from loyalists of the former president, who was in power for almost three decades.



Israeli Military: 5 Soldiers Killed in Combat in South Lebanon

Israeli Iron Dome air defense system fires to intercept rockets that were launched from Lebanon, as seen from Haifa, northern Israel, Thursday, Nov. 7, 2024. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)
Israeli Iron Dome air defense system fires to intercept rockets that were launched from Lebanon, as seen from Haifa, northern Israel, Thursday, Nov. 7, 2024. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)
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Israeli Military: 5 Soldiers Killed in Combat in South Lebanon

Israeli Iron Dome air defense system fires to intercept rockets that were launched from Lebanon, as seen from Haifa, northern Israel, Thursday, Nov. 7, 2024. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)
Israeli Iron Dome air defense system fires to intercept rockets that were launched from Lebanon, as seen from Haifa, northern Israel, Thursday, Nov. 7, 2024. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)

Five Israeli soldiers were killed and 16 others wounded in combat in southern Lebanon in recent weeks, the Israeli military said in a statement on Thursday.

Hezbollah leader Naim Kassem said in a speech aired Wednesday that the Lebanese group is open for ceasefire negotiations only once “the enemy stops its aggression.”

His speech marked the 40-day mourning period since former Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah was assassinated in Beirut.

Hezbollah began firing into Israel on Oct. 8, 2023, in solidarity with Hamas in the Gaza Strip. Since the conflict erupted, more than 3,000 people have been killed and some 13,600 wounded in Lebanon, the Health Ministry reported.