Uganda's President meets Sudan RSF leader on peace talks

By Our Correspondent, ENTEBBE, Uganda 

Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni met with the leader of Sudan’s paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo Friday, pushing for a political solution to end Sudan's nearly three-year-old civil war.

The meeting at State House Entebbe comes as the conflict, which began in April 2023, has reached a "horrific milestone" of over 1,000 days, displacing millions and triggering what United Nations officials describe as the world’s largest humanitarian crisis.

"I emphasized that dialogue and a peaceful political solution are the only sustainable paths to stability for Sudan and the region," Museveni said in a statement on social media platform X.

The talks follow Museveni's appointment by the African Union (AU) to lead a high-level committee aimed at facilitating direct negotiations between Dagalo, known as Hemedti, and Sudan’s army chief, General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan.

Despite these efforts, prospects for a ceasefire remain slim. On Thursday, Burhan reaffirmed his refusal to agree to a truce until the RSF withdraws from seized cities and military zones. 

Burhan also reiterated his rejection of mediation involving the United Arab Emirates, which the Sudanese army accuses of supporting the RSF—a claim the UAE has denied.

While diplomatic visits continue, fighting has intensified across Sudan, including North Darfur, Kordofan, and Blue Nile states. 

On Thursday, a drone attack attributed to the RSF and its allies killed at least three aid workers in South Kordofan, according to local medical networks.

The U.N. recently warned that the RSF’s siege and subsequent takeover of El Fasher in late 2025 bore the "hallmarks of genocide," citing targeted killings and systematic violence against non-Arab communities.