The military rulers of the nation say the agency’s mediation of the nation’s shift to civilian control has been “disappointing.”
In Sudan, where fighting between the national army and opposing paramilitary groups has been going on since mid-April, the UN has been requested to quickly withdraw its Integrated Transition Assistance Mission.
According to a story published by the Reuters news agency on Friday, the Sudanese military administration made the request in a letter to UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres that was also distributed to the Security Council.
“The Sudanese government asked that the UNITAMS operation be discontinued right away. In a letter obtained by the outlet, acting foreign minister Ali Sadeq of Sudan stated, “At the same time, we would like to assure you that the government of Sudan is committed to engaging constructively with the Security Council and the Secretariat.”
The most recent decision was made in response to Volker Perthes, the UNITAMS chief and special envoy to Sudan, who announced in September that he was leaving the position more than three months after being ejected by the country’s government.
Perthes was charged with “partisanship” for his role in resolving national political issues and escalating hostilities between the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) and the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF).
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On April 15, after weeks of growing tensions over a proposal to integrate forces as part of a transition from military control to civilian democracy, violence broke out between the SAF and RSF in Sudan’s capital city of Khartoum. Together, the two armies carried out a military takeover in 2019 to remove President Omar al-Bashir, who had ruled the country for thirty years.
Originally created in 2020 to assist Sudan in its 12-month transition to civilian administration, the UNITAM political mission was extended in 2021 following another coup. In the midst of the horrific conflict that has killed up to 9,000 people nationwide as of September, the UN Security Council extended the mission’s mandate in June for a another six months, ending on December 3.
In a situational report released on Thursday, UNITAM described 345 purported cases of abuses and violations of human rights, along with transgressions of international humanitarian law, involving 2,672 victims—including minors—that were allegedly committed by the SAF and RSF between August 21 and October 31.
The UN secretary-general declared, “UNITAMS continued to exercise its good offices functions in support of efforts to end the conflict and prepare for an eventual return to a political transition.”
Reuters reports that Sudan’s leaders, however, want the operation to end immediately because of its “disappointing” performance.
