It resulted in a crucial statement on Sudan reflecting consensus among the continent’s leaders on the urgent need to end the senseless war that will soon begin its fourth year, killing more than 150,000 people and causing horrific suffering among the Sudanese people – one of the world’s most catastrophic humanitarian disasters.
The statement not only requested a humanitarian truce leading to an immediate ceasefire in order to pave the way for the launch of an inclusive Sudan led and owned comprehensive dialogue process, but also set the record straight on which party in Sudan is legitimate, identifying who the country’s African neighbours and the rest of the world should deal with as the side responsible for preserving the Sudanese state, its unity, territorial integrity and sovereignty.
The statement fell short of stating the demand – made by Egypt and most African countries – to end the three-year suspension of Sudan’s membership in the AU following the outbreak of war between Sudan’s legitimate army and Sovereignty Council on one side, and the renegade Rapid Support Forces (RSF) on the other side, in April 2023. However, the AU certainly came closer to that goal than any point in the past, judging by the fact that the Sudanese foreign minister took part in all the deliberations on Sudan as the official representative of the Sudanese government, and the AU’s declaration that it will work on reopening its liaison office in Khartoum soon.
Equally important, the African leaders affirmed the “AU’s strong condemnation and total rejection of the creation, in the Republic of Sudan, of the so-called parallel government of the Sudan Founding Alliance (or Tasis) led by the paramilitary RSF.” The statement demanded that no AU member states or partners should recognise that “parallel government”, reaffirming its support for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Sudan within its internationally recognised borders.
The statement welcomed the return of the Sudanese transitional government to Khartoum, the capital of Sudan, describing it as “a significant step” towards restoring and preserving public administrative services and the functioning of federal state institutions to better serve the Sudanese people. It also included an unequivocal condemnation of the war crimes committed by the RSF recently in Al-Fasher and plots to practically divide Sudan into East and West, a proposal that’s firmly rejected by the Sudanese people and neighbouring Egypt.
Like many credible UN and human rights reports, the AU statement accused the RSF of committing “systematic killings, mass displacement, ethnic targeting, and the destruction of infrastructure.” It also stressed that “those responsible will be held accountable for serious violations of International Humanitarian Law and International Human Rights Law.” Conceding the key reason Sudan’s war has raged on for so long despite the massive human losses and suffering, the AU said it “strongly condemns” external interference in the internal affairs of Sudan and appealed to all external actors to refrain from actions that will fuel the conflict.
Short of ending the suspension of Sudan’s AU membership, the final statement reached in Addis Ababa complied with what Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty described as Egypt’s “red lines” while seeking to end the ongoing war in Sudan. As chairman of the Egyptian delegation to the meeting, on behalf of President Abdel-Fattah Al-Sisi, the foreign minister warned that any violations of those red lines would result in a “firm, decisive and strong Egyptian reaction.”
Stating that Sudan’s national security interests are seen as part of Egypt’s national security interests, and vice versa, Abdelatty summed up those red lines as: threatening Sudan’s unity and territorial integrity by seeking to divide the country; allowing the disintegration of the country’s key institutions, topped by its army; and seeking to place legitimate state institutions recognised by nearly the entire world countries and parallel, outlawed entities that have been involved in war crimes against the Sudanese people, namely the RSF, on an equal footing.
In repeated statements and speeches he made during the AU meetings, Abdelatty noted that the presence of mercenaries, self-declared parallel entities and a variety of competing armed militias are the key reasons behind the deterioration of the situation in Sudan, deepening the suffering of innocent Sudanese civilians both in Al-Fasher, Darfur and other regions where the fighting rages on.
The AU statement will definitely be reflected in a new plan to end the war in Sudan. According to the US envoy to Africa and the Middle East, Massad Boulos, speaking to the press on Sunday, such a plan was agreed upon by members of the Quartet: Egypt, the United States, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. He added that he hoped to see it released soon, and going into effect as soon as possible. The plan is unlikely to be very different from the joint statement issued by the Quartet members in September, calling for a humanitarian truce that should lead to an immediate ceasefire, paving the way to the launch of an inclusive Sudanese led and owned comprehensive dialogue process in order to reach a permanent end to the war.
Egypt has been keen to coordinate this expected plan with other initiatives presented by the African Union, the Arab League, and the United Nations, hosting on 14 January the Fifth Consultative Meeting on Enhancing Coordination of Peace Initiatives and Efforts for Sudan. Once agreed on, the Quartet’s plan will be submitted to the UN Security Council for an international mandate and a reconstruction fund will be established to support the country’s post-conflict recovery.
While Boulos noted that the Quartet’s new proposal has received preliminary approval from the Sudanese Armed Forces and the RSF, what matters most are immediate practical steps to ensure that the outlawed militias will not continue to receive the external military and financial support that has allowed them to let the fighting drag on for such a long time, leading to an unprecedented outflow of Sudanese refugees, bloodshed and catastrophic suffering.
Egypt will certainly continue with its relentless efforts, undertaken with Quartet members and other influential partners such as Qatar and Turkey, to bring the war in neighbouring Sudan to an end, protecting the lives of the Sudanese people and ensuring that Sudan will remain a sovereign, united state.
* A version of this article appears in print in the 19 February, 2026 edition of Al-Ahram Weekly
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