Why Did Al-Burhan Prevent the Travel of Members of "Sudanese Sovereignty" Without Permission?

Members of the Sudanese Sovereignty Council were banned from travelling without the written permission of its president, General Abdel Fattah Al-Burhan, with the reasons and destination must be clarified, according to a new internal regulation adopted on May 21, 2021.

Travel also requires the approval of other council members, an article in the new regulation that has raised controversy and questions about the reasons for the move at this particular time. 

According to the text of the article added to the regulations, a member who wishes to travel must explain his destination and reason for travelling to the state required if the invitation is official, and he must also discuss the request for a visit at the Meeting of the Council of Sovereignty before all members for approval.

The Rule of Al-Burhan

The Council's Vice President and Commander of the Rapid Support Forces, Lt. General Mohamed Hamdan Daqlo "Hemedti", carried the largest share of references that he was concerned in that decision, given his many recent travels to some countries, particularly those that came secretly and unannounced, such as going to Rome, Italy, and then to the UAE. 

What is troubling in the rapid support forces commander's moves, that he has made sophisticated arming deals for his troops in apart from the military, as well as diplomatic talks and trade agreements.

All this prompted the Sovereign Council and its president to try to establish regulations to reduce Hemedti's travels, within the context of the rivalry between the army and the Rapid Support Forces. 

On May 22, 2021, the Sudanese newspaper Monti Carroo reported that it had made Hemedti angry, and said at a meeting of the Sovereign Council that he "continued to be subjected to an organized campaign to tarnish his image and that he would take legal action against those who targeted him, particularly the Monti Carroo news site."

Especially since it was precisely this site that revealed visits to Italy and the UAE, which caused a lot of controversy on the Sudanese street at the time.

 

Italy’s Visit

Hemedti’s visit to Italy on February 9, 2021, was a course of questions and speculation within the Sudanese political scene. When the RSF commander landed at Leonardo Da Vinci Airport in Rome, it was not a public visit but a secret visit aimed at meetings with members of the Italian government. 

"Hemedti submitted a list of requests for technical aid equipment and strategic support, including drone aircraft that he said he needed for border controls and controls, and to stem the flow of illegal immigration to Europe," it was revealed.

The News site noted: "In addition to the drone, the deal included advanced logistics and intelligence support systems and ground combat equipment, including French Milan missile launchers known for being high-precision and remote-controlled tank launchers”.

According to local Sudanese newspapers, the Italian group agreed to Hemedti’s demands, provided that RSF stopped the supply of fighters to General Khalifa Haftar, commander of the so-called "Army of Eastern Libya", to abide by UN resolutions and remain neutral.

Hemedti was accompanied on his visit by his brother Al-Qoni Hamdan, the third and most influential man in the RSF, who holds the rank of major, as well as a "procurement officer", as well as a Syrian businessman named Mohammed Abdel Halim, who is the investment officer of the Daqlo family in Ethiopia.

All this came apart from the Sudanese Sovereign Council, and its president Abdel Fattah Al-Burhan, who remained silent and waited, and did not show his displeasure until the last decisive decision to ban travel came only with his permission.

UAE’s Visit 

Hemedti’s other visit was the straw that broke the camel's back when he went to Abu Dhabi by a private Emirati plane for a four-day unannounced visit, which was revealed when he returned on May 8, 2021, when the Sudanese newspapers Monte Carroo and Tabia spoke about it. 

Interestingly, on the same day of Hemeti's return, Abdel Fattah al-Burhan was packing his bags to the UAE for a two-day official visit, during which he held talks with the UAE leadership, which caused a conflict between the council's components and confusion in reading the scene as addressed by the Sudanese press. 

Hemedti was a few months ahead of her on a visit to the UAE to participate in the International Defense Exhibition (IDEX) and the Naval Defense Exhibition "Navdex", which lasts from 21 to 25 February 2021 at the Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre. 

In particular, on the sidelines of the visit, he met with Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, UAE’s deputy prime minister, as well as UAE Energy Minister Suhail al-Mazroui, who was greeted by the commander of the Rapid Support Forces.

Hemedti has special relations with the UAE in particular, and his forces have long provided arms, equipment and money, and supported his influence in the corridors of the Sovereign Council at the beginning of its formation after the fall of former President Omar Al-Bashir.

 

Natural Logic

Sudanese journalist Mohamed Nasr said: "The decision to ban members of the sovereign council and the government from travelling only with the direct consent of Abdel Fattah Al-Burhan is normal and logical, in every country considered sovereign”.

He added: "As for the council members moving and travelling to foreign countries, and holding meetings and agreements, some of which relate to the military, as representatives of the state without a formal mandate, then this is flawed and unnatural and threatens Sudan's stability”.

"Hemedti is precisely who’s concerned with the decision, because he is the most travelling member of the Sovereign Council abroad, and we saw that he went to Ethiopia in the context of the crisis with the country, concluded trade agreements, and then we found out that he had met secretly with members of the Government", he said.

He also went undercover to Italy and made military deals to acquire RSF weapons apart from the Sudanese army, which, according to the journalist, could not be accepted.

"Since the overthrow of former President Omar al-Bashir, Hemedti has sought to play the role of state representative and appear as the most powerful man in the country."

"Therefore, during the first days of the SCAF’s rule and also after the overthrow of Awad bin Ouf, Hemedti was keen to meet with ambassadors of foreign countries from all over the world, and held many meetings with them, and with most foreign delegations who came to Sudan”.

"After the balance of power began to lift the government, and the army gathered itself, Hemedti did not comply with the new reality and continued his semi-separatist policy, a situation that has become almost impossible and the state is trying to establish its institutions and move beyond the transition with the least possible losses”.

So the decision of Al-Burhan came to control things at home, and send messages abroad that the representative of Sudan and the biggest head of it is the president of the sovereign council Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, a man who is engaged in conflicts on multiple fronts to tighten his control, and the control of the army behind him, which will appear strongly in the coming days, Nasr said.