Khartoum slams UK's Sudan Conference, decries exclusion and "militia legitimisation"

The Sudanese government has formally objected to the United Kingdom's decision to host a high-level international conference on Sudan scheduled for April 15 in London without extending an invitation to Sudanese authorities.

In a sharply worded letter addressed to British Foreign Secretary David Lammy, Sudanese Foreign Minister Ali Al-Sadiq Yusuf criticised the UK's move as an affront to Sudanese sovereignty and a tacit endorsement of the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), currently at war with the Sudanese army.

The Sudanese Foreign Ministry, in a statement released Monday, stated the letter expressed "Sudan's objection to Britain holding a conference on Sudan without extending an invitation to the Sudanese government." The ministry accused the UK of "equating a sovereign state — a UN member since 1956 — with a terrorist militia committing genocide and crimes against humanity."

The ongoing war, which erupted in April 2023 between the RSF and the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF), has killed at least 20,000 people and displaced 15 million, according to UN estimates. Independent academic research suggests the death toll could be as high as 130,000.

Kenya, UAE, and Chad implicated in Sudanese outrage

Sudan's statement singled out several countries invited to the London summit as "complicit" in supporting the RSF's operations, including the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Chad, and, notably, Kenya.

The Sudanese government alleges that these countries — all expected to be present at the April 15 conference — have provided material, logistical, or political support to the RSF, thus undermining peace efforts.

In particular, Khartoum claims the UAE supplied military drones and equipment to the RSF via Chad, with Kenya being cited for providing political legitimacy to RSF-affiliated actors in recent months.

While no direct military linkage with Nairobi has been made public, Sudanese officials argue that Kenya's continued engagement with opposition figures and RSF sympathizers has undermined Khartoum's position regionally.

The statement described the conference as "a platform for legitimising militia narratives and offering implicated states an opportunity to sanitise their roles in the conflict."

UAE faces ICJ case over genocide allegations

The tensions are further heightened by Sudan's case against the UAE at the International Court of Justice (ICJ), which is set for a preliminary hearing on April 10. The case accuses the UAE of facilitating genocide against the Masalit ethnic group in West Darfur by arming the RSF — a charge the Emirati government has denied.

Sudan has also filed a formal complaint against Chad at the African Union and submitted grievances to the UN Security Council regarding external support to the RSF.

Recent battlefield shifts have given Khartoum reason for confidence. In a rapid series of offensives since late March, the Sudanese army has recaptured key installations in Khartoum, Bahri, and parts of Omdurman — including the presidential palace, international airport, and major military headquarters — for the first time in nearly two years.

The RSF, once dominant in urban warfare and western Sudan, now controls diminishing swaths of territory — retaining influence in four Darfur states and limited zones in Kordofan and the Blue Nile. The army controls Al-Fashir, the capital of North Darfur.

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• sudan actors
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• Rapid Security Forces (RSF)
• Khartoum slams UK's Sudan Conference
• decries exclusion and "militia legitimisation"