Darfuri Movements form a new Military Alliance

The Sudan Liberation Movement Army led by Abdul Wahid Mohamed Nur and the Sudan Liberation Forces Alliance led by El-Tahir Hajar announced on Wednesday the establishment of a military and political Alliance and the formation of a neutral force to protect civilians, secure humanitarian and commercial convoys and workers in humanitarian organizations as well as facilitate their movement to provide assistance to those fleeing the war.

A joint statement shared that “A delegation from the Sudan Liberation Movement Army and the Sudan Liberation Forces Alliance met during the period from September 26th to the 30th, 2024 in the liberated territories, where the general consensus between both parties was the necessity of building a military and security Alliance that keeps pace with the historical stage.”

The statement explained that the stage requires unifying efforts to protect civilians from the threats of the arbitrary war that broke out on April 15th last year, opening safe corridors for humanitarian aid to reach those in need, and stopping the country’s deterioration towards fragmentation.

It added that “National duty and revolutionary responsibility require us to build a military and security alliance between the Sudan Liberation Movement Army and Sudan Liberation Forces Alliance to protect civilians, and these forces are called the Neutral Force.”

The statement stressed that the objectives of the Neutral Force are to protect civilians in areas of control, enhance their safety and avoid harming them, in addition to ensuring the delivery of humanitarian aid to those in need according to their needs without any discrimination, and securing commercial convoys and the movement of civilians.

The Neutral Force also aims to work to enhance the spirit of military and security cooperation between the forces that make up the Military Alliance, and to enhance the revolutionary combat doctrine that achieves comprehensive radical change, in addition to enhancing the principles of international humanitarian law and human dignity.

The Neutral Force works as well to help civilians recover from the physical and psychological effects resulting from their exposure to threats, violence, coercion or deliberate deprivation, in addition to preserving the mechanisms and property of the Neutral Force., according to the statement.

The statement specified the obligations of the Neutral Force, in “Commitment to complete neutrality and standing at an equal distance from both parties to the war that broke out on April 15th, commitment to the principles and objectives for which the force was formed, and full cooperation between the forces that make up the Military Alliance and employing resources to achieve its goals.”

The Neutral Force is also committed to the revolutionary combat doctrine that works to establish a State of equal citizenship in rights and duties.

The statement referred to the establishment of factors that help the continuation of the neutral force, and to avoid repeating the mistakes of previous experiences in the joint military work of the Armed Revolutionary Struggle Movements.

At the forefront of these factors, according to the statement, is “Cooperation in decision-making and continuous communication between the political leadership and the leadership of the Neutral Force, in addition to dealing with the law agreed upon in establishing the Neutral Force, continuous communication and controlling forces and ensuring their locations and means of deployment, in addition to exchanging information and controlling means of communication and contacts between the leadership of the neutral force and the political leadership of the two movements.”

The Neutral Force

The statement stressed that the leadership of the neutral military force consists of institutions that are responsible for managing the force with administrative procedures to control its work effectively.

These institutions include, according to (Darfur 24), “The Supreme Supervisory Committee (the political leadership of the two organizations), the Supreme Administrative Committee of the Neutral Force, the Legal Committee, the Steering and Media Committee.

The tasks of the Administrative Committee include; Responsibility for all forces and supervision of their various units, implementation of administrative and operational directives issued by the political leadership, and submission of daily and weekly reports on an ongoing basis, in addition to informing the political leadership of changes on the ground as they occur, spreading the revolutionary spirit and encouraging the Forces’ sense of maintaining joint work, as well as ensuring that the general directives issued by the political leadership are implemented in a collective spirit and with consent.

The tasks also include “Control, connection and confirmation of the implementation of sustainable directives in a manner that serves the cohesion of the Military Alliance, and conducting communications at the local level to ensure the safety of the movement of forces in various missions with direct directives from the Supreme Administrative Committee, in addition to communicating with the two parties to the war regarding coordination in the management of humanitarian and commercial convoys as well as the movement of civilians, and facilitating the movement of workers in international and regional organizations and ensuring their safety.”

The Legal Committee is responsible for explaining, implementing and applying the laws and regulations established in regards to the Neutral Force’s tasks.

Whereas the Steering and Media Committee is responsible for awareness and guidance on the nature of the Neutral Force, and encouraging the spirit of comradeship and cohesion within the force.

The joint statement was signed by “Staff Maj. Gen. Youssef Ahmed Youssef (Karjokola), Chief of Staff of the Sudan Liberation Army, and Staff Maj. Gen. Ahmed Abdullah Bashar (Abu Tonga), Chief of Staff of the Sudan Liberation Forces Alliance.”