STORY: Sudanese leader says no talks, ceasefire until paramilitary forces defeated
SHOOTING TIME: May 8, 2024
DATELINE: May 9, 2024
LENGTH: 00:01:35
LOCATION: PORT SUDAN, Sudan
CATEGORY: MILITARY

SHOTLIST:
1. various of the Sudanese army force (courtesy of the official website of Sudan's Transitional Sovereign Council)
2. SOUNDBITE 1 (Arabic): ABDEL FATTAH AL-BURHAN, Chairman of Sudan's Transitional Sovereign Council and General Commander of the Sudanese Armed Forces
3. various of the Sudanese army force (courtesy of the official website of Sudan's Transitional Sovereign Council)
4. SOUNDBITE 2 (Arabic): ABDEL FATTAH AL-BURHAN, Chairman of Sudan's Transitional Sovereign Council and General Commander of the Sudanese Armed Forces

STORYLINE:

Chairman of Sudan's Transitional Sovereign Council Abdel Fattah Al-Burhan on Wednesday said there would be no negotiations or ceasefire until the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) is defeated.
   
Al-Burhan, also the general commander of the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF), made the remarks when addressing an army force in the River Nile state in northern Sudan, the sovereign council said in a statement.
   
SOUNDBITE 1 (Arabic): ABDEL FATTAH AL-BURHAN, Chairman of Sudan's Transitional Sovereign Council and General Commander of Sudanese Armed Forces
"There will be no negotiations, no peace and no ceasefire (except after defeating this rebellion)."
  
Al-Burhan's remarks came a day after violent battles between the SAF and the RSF in North Kordofan state.
   
SOUNDBITE 2 (Arabic): ABDEL FATTAH AL-BURHAN, Chairman of Sudan's Transitional Sovereign Council and General Commander of the Sudanese Armed Forces
"These people (the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces) are either to stop or flee and leave Sudan. We are moving this force now and we are confident in victory."

On Tuesday, the SAF announced on its Facebook page that the army's Fifth Infantry Division achieved victories in El Obeid, the capital city of North Kordofan state.
   
However, the RSF on Wednesday said in a statement that it had repelled an attack by the SAF in North Kordofan state.
   
A slew of peace initiatives have been put forward to end the armed conflict in Sudan, including by the African Union, the Intergovernmental Authority on Development, an East African bloc, Saudi Arabia, and the United States, but all have so far failed.
   
According to the UN, half of Sudan's population -- some 25 million people -- need humanitarian assistance and protection, with nearly 18 million people facing acute food insecurity.
   
Since the conflict between the SAF and the RSF broke out on April 15, 2023, around 15,000 fatalities have been recorded, while the number of people displaced inside and outside of Sudan has reached 8.2 million, according to recent estimates by the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs.

Xinhua News Agency correspondents reporting from Port Sudan, Sudan.
(XHTV)