PORT SUDAN – General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, commander-in-chief of the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and chairman of the Transitional Sovereignty Council, has reaffirmed his determination to press ahead with military operations against rival paramilitary forces, despite missing the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) summit in New York due to a U.S. visa denial.
The diplomatic fallout occurred after the United States conditioned the issuance of Al-Burhan’s visa on his acceptance of a proposed 90-day humanitarian ceasefire. The 3-month truce proposal, put forward by Massad Boulos, U.S. senior adviser for Arab and African affairs, sought to facilitate humanitarian aid access and launch an inclusive dialogue leading toward civilian governance.
Al-Burhan’s administration rejected the condition, arguing that a temporary truce would allow opposing forces to regroup. Following the rejection, Washington withheld the visa, preventing the military chief from addressing world leaders at UN headquarters.
Addressing military forces and the public in a recent statement, Al-Burhan maintained a defiant stance regarding international leverage, asserting that Sudan would not yield to external pressure or blackmail. “We seek neither a visa for any country nor permission from anyone,” Al-Burhan stated, committing to sustain the armed campaign until the rebellion is neutralized.
The standoff comes amid what international agencies describe as one of the world’s most severe humanitarian crises, with widespread displacement and rising civilian casualties as diplomatic efforts to secure a durable ceasefire remain stalled
