The special representative of Sudanese President Abdel-Fattah Al-Burhan will be in Türkiye for an official visit, the Turkish Foreign Ministry announced Thursday as the power struggle between Sudan’s factions continues its eighth week.
“Ambassador Dafallah Alhaj Ali, Undersecretary of the Republic of Sudan’s Foreign Ministry will pay an official visit to Türkiye on June 8-9 in his capacity as the Special Representative of the President of the Sovereignty Council Abdel-Fattah Al-Burhan,” Ankara said in its statement.
Turkish Deputy Foreign Minister Burak Akçapar and Ambassador Dafallah will discuss the current situation in Sudan and exchange views on bilateral relations and regional developments, it informed.
“Türkiye will spare no effort for the immediate cessation of hostilities and establishment of a peaceful environment in a friendly and brotherly Sudan,” the ministry said.
Sudan descended into chaos after fighting broke out in mid-April between the army, led by Gen. Al-Burhan, and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), commanded by Gen. Mohammed Hamdan Daglo.
For weeks, Saudi Arabia and the United States have been mediating between the warring parties. On May 21, both countries successfully brokered a temporary cease-fire agreement to help with the delivery of much-needed humanitarian aid to the war-torn country.
Their efforts, however, were dealt with a blow when the military announced in late May it would no longer participate in the cease-fire talks held in the Saudi coastal city of Jeddah.
Fighting across the three cities that make up the country’s greater capital region – Khartoum, Bahri and Omdurman – has escalated since the cease-fire formally expired on June 3 after repeated violations, turning the capital and other urban areas into battlefields and resulting in widespread looting and destruction of residential areas across the country.
The conflict has also displaced over 1.9 million people who fled to safer areas in Sudan and neighboring countries.
The violence has derailed the launch of a transition toward civilian rule four years after a popular uprising ousted President Omar al-Bashir in August 2019.
The army and RSF, which together staged a coup in 2021, fell out over the chain of command and military restructuring plans under transition.
Since the conflict broke out, Ankara has reached out to the Sudanese military several times, expressing “concern and sadness” over increasing casualties in the “fratricidal fight” and calling for “restraint and cease-fire.”
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan repeatedly offered to mediate peace in phone calls with Al-Burhan as his government mobilized all diplomatic means and sent its deputy foreign minister to partake in neighboring Ethiopia’s efforts to achieve a peaceful solution and prevent further bloodshed in Sudan.
Türkiye also helped evacuate its own citizens and nationals of other countries, conducting charter flights and swiftly pulling people out via Ethiopia.
In late April, the Sudanese army and the RSF traded accusations over the shooting of a Turkish evacuation plane as it was landing in Khartoum. None of the crew was wounded, the Turkish ministry assured. The RSF denied firing at the aircraft.
Days later, an official vehicle carrying the Turkish ambassador to Sudan was hit by gunfire in the capital. No casualties were reported. The source of the gunfire was not clear but the army and the RSF blamed each other for the attack.
