A short video spread on social media showing the head of the Sovereignty Council in Sudan, the army commander, Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, walking among his soldiers at the main headquarters of the army command in the center of the capital, Khartoum, wearing military uniform and carrying a rifle on his shoulder.
Meanwhile, fierce battles continue between the army forces and the “rapid support” forces in separate areas of the Sudanese capital.
In the video, immediately behind Al-Burhan, clear features appeared of the “Land Forces” command building, which was bombed and large parts of it burned in the early days of the outbreak of the war, in mid-April.
It was not possible to determine the time of filming the video, which was broadcast (Wednesday), but it represents the first public appearance of the Sudanese army commander since the war broke out more than a month ago.
The video, which lasts less than a minute, shows Al-Burhan shaking hands with members of his forces.
The commander of the “rapid support” forces, Muhammad Hamdan Dagalo, known as “Hemedti”, was speaking in his meetings and statements until recently about the hiding of Al-Burhan and other army leaders inside the “basement” of the General Command, threatening to arrest them and bring them to trial.
Earlier, the Sudanese army announced its full control again of the army’s general headquarters and Khartoum International Airport, after expelling the “support forces”, which controlled parts of the two headquarters during the first weeks of the war.
Before that, Al-Burhan appeared on the first day of the war through a short video, inside a building that is likely to be a “basement” inside the command, and next to him was the military commander, Shams al-Din Kabbashi, and other commanders, following on a large screen the progress of military operations in Khartoum.
As for the commander of the “rapid support” forces, he appeared in public for the first time two weeks ago, in front of the presidential palace in Khartoum.
In parallel, clashes continued between the Sudanese army and the “rapid support” forces in a number of neighborhoods north of the city of “Bahri”, for the second day in a row, and in other separate areas in Khartoum.
According to eyewitnesses in statements to Asharq Al-Awsat, the warplanes participated in bombing a number of sites near the Halfaya Bridge, which connects Bahri and the city of Omdurman.
The “Rapid Support” forces announced their control of an army camp in the “Kadro” area, and captured about 700 of its soldiers. They also seized the Chiefs of Staff and the Air Defense Command in the center of the capital, Khartoum.
On Wednesday, citizens reported renewed clashes with heavy weapons in the “Kadro” and “Al-Droshab” areas, north of “Bahri”.
It is likely that the Rapid Support Forces will intensify their attack on these areas and mobilize more of their forces deployed in Khartoum to attack the Wadi Sayedna base, north of the city of Omdurman, the largest military area of the army, which includes the military airport.
Yesterday, the army announced that it had monitored the movements of the “rapid support” forces inside and outside the capital, Khartoum, indicating that its forces were ready to deal decisively with any operational changes.
On the other hand, the Rapid Support Forces announced their objection to the decision of the President of the Sovereignty Council, Army Commander Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, to make changes in the leadership of the police forces to plunge them into the ongoing war. And she said in a statement, on Wednesday, that the police forces have remained nationalistic and impartial throughout their history, and they must not succumb to what it described as “the plans of the army leaders and the remnants of the former regime” and engage in a war to which it is not a party.
The Rapid Support Forces warned that its forces would not hesitate to confront any moves and actions of the police or any party that exploits its name and uniforms against its forces.
And the Sudanese army commander, Abdel Fattah Al-Burhan, issued a decision last Monday to relieve Lieutenant General, the Minister of Interior in charge of Director General of the Police Forces, Anan Hamid, from his post, and appointed his replacement, Lieutenant General Khaled Hassan Mohieldin, to carry out the tasks of the police department. Immediately after the outbreak of the war, the thousands of police forces withdrew from stations, stations, and streets all over Khartoum.
Earlier, the army commanders deployed large police forces from the Central Reserve Unit to secure residential neighborhoods and streets during confrontations with the Rapid Support Forces.
Last Thursday, representatives of the Sudanese army and the Rapid Support Forces signed a declaration of principles in the city of Jeddah, according to an initiative from the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the United States, stipulating that civilians should not be harmed in the areas of clashes.
Mediation seeks, with international and regional support, to get the two parties to reach a permanent ceasefire agreement that opens the way for political talks to resolve the crisis in the country.
