Sudan10 September, 20263 min read
Al-Burhan Drops Complaints as Sudan National Dialogue Excludes RSF and Main Parties
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Al-Burhan dropped complaints against participants in the national dialogue. Dialogue preparations began in Khartoum without the RSF.
Burhan drops complaints
Sudan’s Sovereignty Council President Abdel Fattah al-Burhan sparked controversy after deciding to drop complaints against participants in the national dialogue, a move that Al Jazeera’s Abdullah Bilal said enhances the chances of political settlement while academic Fathi Abu Ammar called the decision "dead". Al Jazeera’s Alan Boswell, director of the Horn of Africa program at the International Crisis Group, said the absence of the Rapid Support Forces and the main political parties dooms the path to failure.
The Al Jazeera segment also tied the dialogue’s uncertain future to ongoing fighting and the displacement of 22,000 civilians, describing the process as suspended between an optimistic vision of its national importance and a critical view that considers it a path to division. In parallel, Benin Web TV said the committee tasked with preparing a national dialogue held its first meeting in Khartoum on Sunday, August 30, 2026, as a process led by General al-Burhan but rejected by a large portion of civil and political opposition while Sudan remained at war for more than three years with the Rapid Support Forces (RSF).
Women demand guarantees
Sudanese women’s leaders and activists questioned whether army chief and Sovereignty Council chair Gen Abdelfattah El Burhan’s proposed dialogue can deliver a meaningful political breakthrough without a ceasefire, independent guarantees, and genuine participation by women. Dabanga Radio TV Online reported that the 19-member Sudan Dialogue Preparation Committee called for written, verifiable guarantees for participants, an end to cases linked to political views against those travelling from abroad to join the dialogue, temporary procedural immunity, and an environment that allows public freedoms.
Women’s activist Rabha Ismail told Radio Dabanga that while ending Sudan’s war will ultimately require dialogue, its success depends on the warring parties agreeing to its terms and mechanisms, warning that any dialogue held amid fighting risks becoming, in her words, “a one-sided dialogue”. Dabanga also quoted Dar Alsalam Abdullah Wada’a, head of the Sudan Civil Movement, asking “Who guarantees these guarantees?” and arguing that Burhan cannot be treated as a neutral actor or as the sole representative of the state in the political process.
Mediators test timing
As international mediators stepped up consultations in Khartoum, The Arab Weekly said Sudanese military leader Abdel Fattah al-Burhan met representatives of the Quintet Mechanism at the Republican Palace to discuss efforts to end the country’s civil war and advance a political process aimed at restoring civilian rule. The Arab Weekly reported that Mohamed Ibn Chambas described the meeting with Burhan as “constructive” and said the Quintet firmly believes that “there is no military solution to the war in Sudan,” while calling for “practical and concrete” measures to protect civilians and stop the fighting.
Middle East Online framed the same diplomatic push as testing whether dialogue can advance amid war, saying the Quintet Mechanism brought representatives of the United Nations, African Union, European Union, Arab League and IGAD to Khartoum for a three-day visit. Middle East Online also said the Democratic Bloc pressed for a two-stage process, beginning with a preparatory phase at a mutually agreed location followed by a final dialogue inside Sudan, while Osman Mirghani described the committee preparing for the internal dialogue’s meeting with the Quintet as productive.