PORT SUDAN: Sudanese army chief General Abdel Fattah Al-Burhan, at war for months with paramilitaries, was headed to New York on Wednesday to address the UN General Assembly, his office said.
Burhan, de facto leader of Sudan since a 2021 coup, “will lead the Sudanese delegation” to the annual session, the Sovereignty Council he heads said in a statement.
The army chief has made a flurry of visits abroad in recent weeks after shifting base to Port Sudan late last month from army headquarters in Khartoum where he had been holed up under siege since fighting broke out with the paramilitary Rapid Suport Forces (RSF) of his former deputy, General Mohamed Hamdan Daglo, on April 15.
Analysts have said his diplomatic offensive is a drive to burnish his legitimacy in the event of negotiations to end the fighting.
Burhan has already visited Egypt, South Sudan, Qatar, Eritrea, Turkiye and Uganda.
During his UN visit, Burhan intends to address the UN General Assembly and will attend “high level meetings” on the sidelines, the statement said.
The fighting in Sudan has killed at least 7,500 people, according to the NGO Acled and the United Nations says more than five million people have fled their homes.
Sudan army chief headed to UN General Assembly
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Sudan army chief headed to UN General Assembly
- Analysts have said Burhan’s diplomatic offensive is a drive to burnish his legitimacy in negotiations to end the fighting
Syrian Democratic Forces withdraws from east of Aleppo
RIYADH: Syrian Democratic Forces have withdrawn from positions east of Aleppo, according to SDF head Mazloum Abdi.
He announced Friday that SDF will withdraw from east of Aleppo at 7 a.m. local time on Saturday and redeploy them to areas east of the Euphrates, citing calls from friendly countries and mediators.
Hours earlier, a US military designation had visited Deir Hafer and met with SDF officials in an apparent attempt to tamp down tensions.
The US has good relations with both sides and has urged calm. A spokesperson for the US military did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Shortly before Abdi’s announcement, interim President Ahmed Al-Sharaa had announced issuance of a decree strengthening Kurdish rights.
A wave of displacement
Earlier in the day, hundreds of people carrying their belongings arrived in government-held areas in northern Syria ahead of the anticipated offensive by Syrian troops on territory held by Kurdish-led fighters.
Many of the civilians who fled were seen using side roads to reach government-held areas because the main highway was blocked at a checkpoint in the town of Deir Hafer controlled by the SDF.
The Syrian army said late Wednesday that civilians would be able to evacuate through the “humanitarian corridor” from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Thursday and then extended the evacuation period another day, saying the SDF had stopped civilians from leaving.
There had been limited exchanges of fire between the two sides in the area before that.
Men, women and children arrived on the government side of the line in cars and pickup trucks that were packed with bags of clothes, mattresses and other belongings. They were met by local officials who directed them to shelters.
* with input from Reuters, AP
