Nyala, November 20 (Darfur24)
A senior commander in the Sudan Liberation Forces Alliance, led by Tahir Abu Bakr Hajar, has admitted that the movement’s forces fought alongside the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) in El Fasher after the Joint Force of Darfur movements abandoned its neutral position and some factions aligned with the Sudanese army.
The Joint Force formally announced in November 2023 that it was withdrawing and joining the army in opposition to the RSF. At the time, Hajar, Al-Hadi Idris, and Suleiman Sandal publicly said their groups remained neutral.
Speaking to dozens of residents in northern Kutum, the Alliance’s Chief of Staff, Major General Ahmed Abdullah Bashar Abu Tanqa, said their involvement in the battles was driven by a commitment to “justice and equality for the Sudanese people,” despite what he described as significant casualties.
In a video shared on his X account, Presidential Council member Tahir Abu Bakr Hajar said the destruction in El Fasher and across Darfur could have been avoided had the Joint Force maintained its neutrality.
“We fought in El Fasher for two years to dismantle the National Congress and its networks, which continued to influence military command appointments and governor selections, and to exploit Darfur’s agricultural and livestock resources without delivering services to citizens,” Hajar said.
The Sudan Liberation Forces Alliance is one of the signatories of the Founding Charter of the Alliance, signed last February in Nairobi. The coalition appointed Hajar to its 15-member Presidential Council, chaired by RSF commander Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, with SPLM–North leader Abdel Aziz al-Hilu as deputy.
The Alliance’s forces operate within the broader Founding Alliance, which includes the RSF, the Sudan Liberation Movement–Transitional Council led by Al-Hadi Idris, the Justice and Equality Movement led by Suleiman Sandal, and the SPLM–North led by Abdel Aziz al-Hilu.