BY HIKMA KASSIM
Following a leaked UN document found “credible” evidence, that United Arab Emirates (UAE) was sending weapons to the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), the UAE has denied arming the paramilitary group.
The leaked document says several shipments of weapons and ammunition shipments were unloaded each week from cargo planes at an airport in Chad, and handed to the RSF at the Sudanese border.
A UAE official notified the Financial Times that the Gulf state “does not take sides in the current conflict”, adding that the country had consistently urged for de-escalation, a sustainable ceasefire and the initiation of diplomatic dialogue in Sudan.
For some analysts, even though the UAE denies, its alleged backing has been crucial in strengthening the RSF.
“If the UAE withdraws its support and cuts ties with the RSF today, there’s an 80 per cent chance the war might end tomorrow,” said Hamid Khalafallah, a Sudan expert and PhD researcher at the UK’s University of Manchester.
According to the UN report, since the conflict broke out, both the RSF and the Sudanese Armed Forces have committed atrocities in different areas.
The report also identifies the UAE as a key country in the RSF’s financial networks, which include gold-smuggling and proxy companies.
The conflict has drawn in several other countries rivaling for influence in strategically placed Sudan, which borders the Red Sea and straddles the Middle East and Africa.
Nevertheless, various peace talks that have also involved the US have failed to curb the violence, with analysts saying they lacked co-ordination and a clear strategy as well as the backing of several important players.
As the conflict fragments, there is a risk of new groups forming and a splintering into localized fighting, which could increase the suffering of civilians and make peace talks more difficult, Financial Times reported.