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RSF Commander Affirms Commitment to IGAD Decisions for Sudan Peace

The Rapid Support Forces (RSF) commander, Mohammed Hamdan "Hemedti" Dagalo and President Yoweri Museveni (Hemedti X account)
The Rapid Support Forces (RSF) commander, Mohammed Hamdan "Hemedti" Dagalo and President Yoweri Museveni (Hemedti X account)
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RSF Commander Affirms Commitment to IGAD Decisions for Sudan Peace

The Rapid Support Forces (RSF) commander, Mohammed Hamdan "Hemedti" Dagalo and President Yoweri Museveni (Hemedti X account)
The Rapid Support Forces (RSF) commander, Mohammed Hamdan "Hemedti" Dagalo and President Yoweri Museveni (Hemedti X account)

The Rapid Support Forces (RSF) commander, Mohammed Hamdan "Hemedti" Dagalo, announced his readiness to meet with Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) commander Abdel Fattah al-Burhan at any place or time determined by the Intergovernmental Authority for Development (IGAD).

Following an invitation from the IGAD presidency, the RSF prepared for a meeting between the two officials without specifying the place and time.

Conflicting reports discussed the upcoming meeting, with some saying it would be held on Thursday in Djibouti or Entebbe, Uganda, while others suggested it would be postponed or even potentially canceled.

On Wednesday, the RSF spokesman, Al-Fatih Qureshi, confirmed to Asharq Al-Awsat that arrangements were underway, with IGAD's primary concern being peace in the Horn of Africa.

- Hemedti in Uganda

Hemedti arrived in Uganda and held talks with President Yoweri Museveni. The latter shared images of their meeting on his X account, saying he was thoroughly briefed on the situation in Sudan.

During their discussion, Hemedti provided a comprehensive account of the origins of the ongoing conflict in Sudan, attributing it to remnants of the former regime, who received support from certain elements within the armed forces.

He also outlined his vision for negotiation, war cessation, and establishing a just Sudanese state.

President Museveni expressed his unwavering support for the Sudanese people and pledged to bolster efforts to achieve peace and stability within Sudan.

Museveni asserted to Hemedti that he would harness all his capabilities and relationships to help the Sudanese overcome this challenging period.

Hemedti emphasized his commitment to the resolutions arising from the recent IGAD Presidents' Summit held in Djibouti.

- RSF conditions to meet Burhan

Qureshi confirmed to Asharq Al-Awsat that the RSF Commander was ready to meet with the Army Commander at any place or time determined by IGAD, but he stipulated that Burhan must come to the meeting in his capacity as Commander of the Sudanese Army and not in any other role.

Qureshi reiterated the RSF's dedication to the outcomes of the IGAD summit on Sudan, held in Djibouti earlier this month.

Hemedti will only meet Burhan as commander of the Sudanese army, and the meeting will be held without preconditions, said the spokesman, adding that Burhan also agreed to the meeting without any preconditions.

- Foreign Ministry confirms the postponement

For its part, the Foreign Ministry said the meeting between Burhan and Hemedti was postponed till January after the latter could not reach Djibouti on time, citing "technical reasons."

The ministry said in a statement that it was informed by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation of Djibouti, the current chair country of the Inter-Governmental Authority on Development (IGAD), that Dagalo was unable to attend the meeting scheduled for Thursday due to technical reasons.

There would be coordination again to hold the meeting next January, added the statement.

It noted that Burhan, out of his keenness to end the suffering of the Sudanese people caused by the "rebel militia," was prepared to leave Wednesday evening for the IGAD-proposed meeting.

The ministry further expressed regret over "the RSF's procrastination and its unwillingness to stop the destruction of Sudan and harming the people."

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Israeli Military Changes Initial Account of Gaza Aid Worker Killings

Palestinians mourn medics, who came under Israeli fire while on a rescue mission, after their bodies were recovered, according to the Red Crescent, at Nasser hospital in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip March 31, 2025. (Reuters)
Palestinians mourn medics, who came under Israeli fire while on a rescue mission, after their bodies were recovered, according to the Red Crescent, at Nasser hospital in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip March 31, 2025. (Reuters)
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Israeli Military Changes Initial Account of Gaza Aid Worker Killings

Palestinians mourn medics, who came under Israeli fire while on a rescue mission, after their bodies were recovered, according to the Red Crescent, at Nasser hospital in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip March 31, 2025. (Reuters)
Palestinians mourn medics, who came under Israeli fire while on a rescue mission, after their bodies were recovered, according to the Red Crescent, at Nasser hospital in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip March 31, 2025. (Reuters)

The Israeli military has provided new details that changed its initial account of the killing of 15 emergency workers near the southern Gaza city of Rafah last month but said investigators were still examining the evidence.

The 15 paramedics and emergency responders were shot dead on March 23 and buried in a shallow grave where their bodies were found a week later by officials from the United Nations and the Palestinian Red Crescent. Another man is still missing.

The military initially said soldiers had opened fire on vehicles that approached their position "suspiciously" in the dark without lights or markings. It said they killed nine fighters from Hamas and Islamic Jihad who were travelling in Palestinian Red Crescent vehicles.

But video recovered from the mobile phone of one of the dead men and published by the Palestinian Red Crescent showed emergency workers in their uniforms and clearly marked ambulances and fire trucks, with their lights on, being fired on by soldiers.

The only known survivor of the incident, Palestinian Red Crescent paramedic Munther Abed, also said he had seen soldiers opening fire on clearly marked emergency response vehicles.

An Israeli military official said late on Saturday the investigators were examining the video and conclusions were expected to be presented to army commanders on Sunday.

Israeli media briefed by the military reported that troops had identified at least six of the 15 dead as members of the groups. However, the official declined to provide any evidence or detail of how the identifications were made, saying he did not want to share classified information.

"According to our information, there were terrorists there but this investigation is not over," he told reporters at the briefing late on Saturday.

The UN and the Palestinian Red Cross have demanded an independent inquiry into the killing of the paramedics.

Red Crescent officials have said 17 paramedics and emergency workers from the Red Crescent, the Civil Emergency service and the UN had been dispatched to respond to reports of injuries from Israeli air strikes.

Apart from Abed, who was detained for several hours before being released, another worker is still missing.

OPENED FIRE

The military official said initial findings from the investigation showed troops had opened fire on a vehicle at around 4 a.m., killing two members of the Hamas internal security forces, and taking another prisoner, who the official said had admitted under interrogation to being in Hamas.

As time passed, several vehicles passed along the road until, at around 6 a.m., he said troops received word from aerial surveillance that a suspicious group of vehicles was approaching.

"They feel this is another incident like what happened at 4 a.m. and they opened fire," the official said.

He said aerial surveillance footage showed the troops were at some distance when they opened fire, and he denied reports that the troops handcuffed at least some of the paramedics and shot them at close range.

"It's not from close. They opened fire from afar," he said. "There's no mistreatment of the people there."

He said the soldiers had approached the group they had shot, identifying at least some of them as fighters. However, he did not explain what evidence had prompted the assessment.

"And in their eyes, they had an encounter with terrorists, that is a successful encounter with terrorists."

He said the troops had informed the UN of the incident on the same day and initially covered the bodies with camouflage netting until they could be recovered. UN officials did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.

"There was no incident where the Israeli army tried to cover up. On the contrary, they called the UN immediately."

Later, when the UN did not immediately come to take the bodies, the soldiers covered them with sand to stop animals from getting at them, the official said.

He said the vehicles were pushed out of the way by a heavy engineering vehicle to clear the road but he could not explain why the vehicles were crushed by the engineering vehicle and then buried.