Sudan’s prime minister proposed a peace initiative at the UN Security Council to end the longstanding war against the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF). However, the United States encouraged both sides to accept a Trump administration-backed humanitarian truce.
Prime Minister Kamil Idris told the council his plan envisions a ceasefire monitored by the United Nations, the African Union, and the Arab League. He said it also requires paramilitary forces to leave all territory they currently hold, move into supervised camps, and be disarmed.
Speaking before Idris, US deputy ambassador Jeffrey Bartos said the Trump administration had proposed a humanitarian truce as a step toward relief for civilians. “We urge both belligerents to accept this plan without preconditions immediately,” Bartos said.
Idris signaled resistance to external frameworks, making an oblique reference to the mediation track backed by Saudi Arabia, Egypt, and the United Arab Emirates. He told the council the government’s approach is “homemade—not imposed on us.”
The RSF has previously indicated openness to a humanitarian pause, agreeing to one in early November. At the time, a Sudanese military official told The Associated Press the army would only accept a truce if the RSF fully withdraws from civilian areas and gives up its weapons, conditions reflected in Idris’ proposal. Idris said that without moving RSF forces into camps, any truce had “no chance for success.”
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It appeared unlikely the RSF would embrace terms that would leave government forces in a dominant position while stripping the paramilitary group of its military capacity.
Sudan’s war erupted in April 2023 amid a power struggle between the military and the RSF, with the UN and rights groups citing mass killings, rapes, and ethnically motivated violence amounting to war crimes and crimes against humanity. The conflict has killed more than 40,000 people by UN figures, displaced more than 14 million, and fueled disease outbreaks and famine in parts of the country.
UAE Ambassador Mohamed Abushahab, whose country is part of the Quad mediation group, urged swift action to get assistance moving. “Lessons of history and present realities make it clear that unilateral efforts by either of the warring parties are not sustainable and will only prolong the war,” he warned. Abushahab said a humanitarian truce should lead to a lasting ceasefire “and a pathway toward civilian rule independent of the warring parties.”
UN Assistant Secretary-General Khaled Khiari cited growing concern about a flow of increasingly sophisticated weapons and criticized unnamed states that continue supplying arms. “While they were able to stop fighting to preserve oil revenues, they have so far failed to do the same to protect their population,” Khiari said. “The backers of both sides must use their influence to help stop the slaughter, not to cause further devastation.”
Idris urged the Security Council to back his plan. “This initiative can mark the moment when Sudan steps back from the edge and the international community — You! You! — stood on the right side of history,” he said, adding the council should “be remembered not as a witness to collapse, but as a partner in recovery.”