Sudan announced on Sunday the agreement to hold an emergency summit “soon” of the Intergovernmental Organization for Development in East Africa (IGAD) in Djibouti, to develop a “clear-cut” roadmap to end the Sudanese crisis.
This came in two separate meetings in Djibouti, which brought together the President of the Sudanese Sovereignty Council, Abdel Fattah Al-Burhan, with the President of Djibouti, the President of the current session of IGAD, Omar Ismail Qili, and the Executive Secretary of IGAD and Raqna Kobiho.
IGAD is an African sub-regional governmental organization founded in 1996, headquartered in Djibouti, and comprising Ethiopia, Kenya, Uganda, Somalia, Djibouti, Eritrea, Sudan and South Sudan.
According to a statement from the Sudanese Sovereignty Council, “Burhan and the President of Djibouti held a session of bilateral talks during which they discussed developments in the situation in Sudan.”
The statement quoted Burhan as saying: “We hope for the success of the upcoming IGAD summit on Sudan and to find a solution to the Sudanese crisis,” adding: “We are in favor of stopping the war and fighting and returning to normal life for the Sudanese people.”
Since mid-April 2023, the Sudanese army and the Rapid Support Forces have been fighting a war that has left more than 9,000 people dead, as well as more than 6 million displaced people and refugees inside and outside the country, according to the United Nations.
During his visit to Djibouti, Burhan held a separate meeting with the executive secretary of IGAD, according to another statement by the Sovereignty Council.
Burhan and Kabiho “agreed to hold an emergency IGAD summit,” the statement said, adding that “it was agreed on the importance of convening a summit of IGAD presidents soon (without specifying a date) in Djibouti to develop a clear roadmap to end the crisis in Sudan.”
According to Sudan’s Sovereign Council, Burhan returned to the country on Sunday evening “after a one-day official visit to Djibouti”.
(Anatolia)/Al-Yurae
