Sudan’s Army Chief of Staff, Lt. Gen. Yassir al-Atta, has expressed regret over the alleged recruitment of tens of thousands of South Sudanese nationals by the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) to fight in Sudan’s war.
Speaking to troops in Khartoum on Sunday, al-Atta described South Sudan as a “sisterly country” but accused the RSF of recruiting thousands of its nationals as mercenaries.
“Unfortunately, there are tens of thousands of mercenaries from our sisterly country, South Sudan,” he said.
He also accused the RSF of recruiting fighters from Chad, Libya, Niger, Ethiopia, Somalia, other West African countries and Colombia.
Sudan and South Sudan share a long border and maintain close economic ties. South Sudan relies on Sudanese infrastructure to transport its oil exports to international markets.
A UN Panel of Experts on South Sudan said in an April 2024 report that South Sudanese nationals had fought on both sides of Sudan’s conflict. Some had joined independently, while others appeared to have been forcibly recruited. The report did not establish that they were acting on behalf of the South Sudanese government.
Former South Sudanese Interior Minister Angelina Teny also acknowledged in November 2023 that South Sudanese nationals were participating in the conflict.
Al-Atta further accused the United Arab Emirates and Israel’s intelligence agency, Mossad, of supporting the RSF, portraying the conflict as a campaign against foreign-backed efforts to undermine Sudan.
He also sought to distance the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) military campaign from ethnic targeting in Darfur and Kordofan, saying the army had no intention of targeting communities or seeking revenge for atrocities allegedly committed by RSF fighters.
Al-Atta named the Hawazma, Misseriya, Rizeigat, Habbaniya, Beni Halba and Salamat tribes, saying they are not targets of the military campaign. He indicated that the army intends to fight the RSF and its “mercenaries” in Darfur and Kordofan.
“We are fighting a war that does not belong to any tribe, nor to communities in specific geographical areas of our beloved country,” he said.
He added that the army is seeking to protect civilians in Darfur and Kordofan rather than punish entire communities for the actions of the RSF.
‘We are going to fight the mercenaries,’ he said. al-Atta also said attacks on electricity and infrastructure would not deter the army from defeating the RSF and capturing all Sudanese territory.
The RSF and the South Sudanese government had yet to comment on al-Atta’s remarks.
Sudan’s war erupted in April 2023 following a power struggle between the army, led by General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, and the RSF, commanded by Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, known as Hemedti. The conflict has divided control of the country, with the army holding most of the north, east and central regions, while the RSF controls much of Darfur and parts of Kordofan.
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