Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) leader General Abdel Fattah al Burhan has announced a major reorganization of senior military officers as he seeks to consolidate control over the military. Meanwhile, fighting between the SAF and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) continues in western Sudan.
On August 18, a day after several long-serving officers retired, Burhan appointed Major General Mutasim Abbas al Tom Ahmed as the inspector general of the SAF. Ahmed is the first individual to hold this position since the RSF captured and reportedly executed his predecessor in 2023.
The reshuffle also included the promotion and retirement of Sudanese Air Force chief Al Tahir Mohamed Al Awad al Amin, who has been under sanctions from the European Union for the alleged “indiscriminate aerial bombardment of densely populated residential areas.” Burhan also appointed a new air force chief and air defense head.
Several outgoing SAF generals are reported to have longstanding ties to Islamist groups, including the Popular Defense Forces and networks linked to the National Congress Party. These allied forces include fighters associated with the dissolved National Congress Party (NCP), which ruled Sudan under the leadership of dictator Omar al Bashir until the 2019 revolution. Despite the group being officially banned, NCP loyalists have reemerged during the war, with military sources crediting NCP-aligned fighters with playing a key role in breaking RSF sieges around Khartoum.
A separate decree issued by Burhan on August 17 reportedly placed “all the other armed groups fighting alongside the army—including former Darfur rebels, Islamist brigades, [and] civilians who joined the war effort and tribal militias” under his direct command. The consolidation affects numerous armed groups, including the Islamist Al Baraa Bin Malik Brigade, now reportedly 20,000 strong.
The SAF’s reliance on Islamist-aligned fighters has drawn concern from Western and regional partners, who fear a resurgence of Islamist influence in Sudanese politics. By bringing these forces under the SAF’s direct command, Burhan is attempting to maintain their military support while preventing them from becoming independent power centers.
Sudanese politicians supportive of Burhan praised the move as necessary to prevent the rise of rival factions within the military.
Earlier, on July 26, the RSF, led by Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, better known as Hemedti, declared the establishment of the “Government of Peace and Unity” in areas under its control, largely in western Sudan. The RSF and its allies had previously signed a charter in Nairobi in February, endorsing a transitional constitution in a shift away from the SAF government in Khartoum. While the RSF first announced its intention to form a parallel government in April, it wasn’t until July that the group moved beyond a declaration to appoint officials, including naming Hemedti to head a 15-member presidential council and Mohamed Hassan al Taishi as prime minister.
The United Nations Security Council subsequently rejected the Rapid Support Forces’ declaration of a rival government, warning that the move posed “a direct threat to Sudan’s territorial integrity,” and risked further fragmenting the country. The SAF-backed government in Khartoum dismissed the rival administration as illegitimate.
“We will not accept any other country recognizing a so-called parallel government,” SAF Foreign Minister Ali Youssef said. He later denounced the move as “fictitious” and labeled the RSF as a “terrorist militia.”
On August 15, less than a month after the RSF’s announcement, Burhan met US Senior Advisor for Africa Massad Boulos in Switzerland to discuss a potential ceasefire and humanitarian aid. The talks between the SAF leader and Boulos followed an American condemnation of RSF attacks on civilians in North Darfur, particularly around the Zamzam and Abu Shouk displacement camps. US sanctions continue to target Hemedti and his militia.
