Sudan’s prime minister has presented a broad UN-backed peace proposal to end nearly 1,000 days of war with the Rapid Support Forces, even as the US and international mediators intensify calls for an immediate humanitarian truce.
After nearly 1,000 days of brutal fighting that has devastated communities across Sudan, the country’s prime minister on Monday set out a sweeping peace initiative aimed at ending the conflict with a rival paramilitary force, even as the United States renewed calls for an immediate humanitarian truce.
Kamil Idris, head of Sudan’s transitional civilian government, told the UN Security Council that his plan calls for a ceasefire monitored by the United Nations, African Union, and Arab League. It also seeks the withdrawal of paramilitary forces from all areas they occupy, their placement in supervised camps, and their disarmament.
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Sudan descended into chaos in April 2023 when a power struggle between the military and the powerful paramilitary Rapid Support Forces erupted into open warfare. The fighting has involved widespread mass killings and rapes, as well as ethnically motivated violence, amounting to war crimes and crimes against humanity, according to the UN and international rights groups.
Support from the RSF for the proposal appeared highly unlikely, as it would effectively hand victory to government forces and strip the paramilitaries of their military power.
In an indirect reference to a truce backed by the US and key mediators Saudi Arabia, Egypt, and the United Arab Emirates, known as the Quad, Idris told the Security Council that the government’s proposal was “homemade—not imposed on us.”
The Rapid Support Forces agreed to a humanitarian truce in early November. At the time, a Sudanese military official told The Associated Press that the army welcomed the Quad’s proposal but would only accept a truce once the RSF fully withdrew from civilian areas and surrendered their weapons—provisions reflected in Idris’s plan.
Idris said that without confining the paramilitary forces to camps, a truce had “no chance for success.” He urged the 15-member Security Council to support his initiative.
“This initiative can mark the moment when Sudan steps back from the edge and the international community—you! You!—stands on the right side of history,” the prime minister said, adding that the council should “be remembered not as a witness to collapse, but as a partner in recovery.”
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US and international calls for a humanitarian truceUS deputy ambassador Jeffrey Bartos, who addressed the council before Idris, said the Trump administration had offered a humanitarian truce as a path forward. “We urge both belligerents to accept this plan without preconditions immediately,” he said.
Bartos said the Trump administration strongly condemns the horrific violence across Darfur and the Kordofan region and the atrocities committed by both the Sudanese Armed Forces and the Rapid Support Forces, who must be held accountable.
UAE Ambassador Mohamed Abushahab, a Quad member, said there was an immediate opportunity to implement the humanitarian truce and deliver aid to civilians in desperate need. He warned that “unilateral efforts by either of the warring parties are not sustainable and will only prolong the war.”
Abushahab said a humanitarian truce must be followed by a permanent ceasefire “and a pathway towards civilian rule independent of the warring parties.”
UN Assistant Secretary-General for Political Affairs Khaled Khiari highlighted growing Security Council concern over the conflict, which he said has been fuelled by the continued supply of increasingly sophisticated weapons. He criticised unnamed countries for failing to halt arms supplies and faulted both government and paramilitary forces for refusing to compromise or de-escalate.
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“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.”
The war has killed more than 40,000 people, according to UN figures, though aid groups say the true toll could be many times higher. The conflict has triggered the world’s largest humanitarian crisis, with over 14 million people displaced, disease outbreaks spreading, and famine taking hold in parts of the country.
