The Sudanese Prime Minister, Kamil Idris, on Monday proposed a peace initiative to the UN Security Council (UNSC) to end the raging war in Sudan.
Idris is on a visit to the US to meet with senior UN officials to discuss the conflict in Sudan, which is nearing its third-year mark, and the resulting dire humanitarian crisis.
The war in Sudan broke out in April 2023 between the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), killing thousands and displacing around 12 million people amid spreading famine and cholera outbreaks.
It has also driven the country into effective partition, with the SAF controlling the center, north and east, while the RSF holds the entire Darfur region and parts of Kordofan in the south, with each side declaring a government.
SAF-Backed Peace Initiative
During an open session at the UNSC to address the war in Sudan, Idris, who is leading the SAF-aligned government, presented a comprehensive “homemade” peace initiative to bring the war to an end, reported Sudan News Agency (SUNA).
The peace initiative calls for a comprehensive ceasefire monitored by the UN, the African Union (AU) and the Arab League (AL). It requires the withdrawal of the RSF from the areas they control, in line with the terms of the Jeddah Declaration.
The paramilitary fighters will be placed in camps under UN and regional supervision. The initiative also calls for the disarmament of the RSF under international supervision and with guarantees against arms recycling.
Moreover, the initiative calls for securing the return of the internally displaced persons and refugees, as well as increasing the flow of humanitarian aid to all regions.
Idris said that the Sudanese government will take confidence-building measures in line with UNSC Resolution 2736 to ensure responsiveness to the initiative. He also called for a Sudanese-Sudanese dialogue during the transitional period, encompassing all political forces, which will be followed by general elections.
Inclusive Framework
The Sudanese Prime Minister emphasized that the proposed peace initiative complements the Saudi-US-Egyptian initiative. He added that it provides a realistic and inclusive framework to protect civilians, end atrocities, and restore the state authority, while paving the way for national reconciliation.
He also pointed out that the initiative underscores that peace cannot be achieved without accountability, stability cannot be established without a single national authority, and the future cannot be built without recovery.
Idris called on the UNSC and the international community to support the plan. “This initiative can mark the moment when Sudan steps back from the edge and the international community — You! You! — stood on the right side of history,” he said, urging the UNSC to “be remembered not as a witness to collapse, but as a partner in recovery.”
US Backs Humanitarian Truce
The US, for its part, strongly condemned the violence in Darfur and Kordofan, urging the warring parties to accept the Trump administration’s call for an immediate humanitarian truth.
Addressing the UNSC before Idris, the US Deputy Ambassador, Jeffrey Bartos, urged the SAF and RSF to halt the fighting and “accept this plan without preconditions immediately.”
On Friday, the US State Secretary, Marco Rubio, said that Washington is pushing for a humanitarian truce during the New Year holidays. “Our number one priority we’re focused on, 99 percent of our focus, is this humanitarian truce and achieving that as soon as possible, and we think that the new year and the upcoming holidays are a great opportunity for both sides to agree to that. And we’re really pushing very hard on that regard,” Rubio said.
In September, the US, Saudi Arabia, Egypt and the UAE – collectively known as the Quad – proposed a roadmap for peace in Sudan, involving a three-month humanitarian truce, followed by a permanent ceasefire and a transition to civilian-led governance.
However, Al-Burhan rejected the proposal, slamming it as the “worst yet” for eliminating the SAF while keeping the RSF in their positions. He also criticized the presence of the UAE in the Quad group, as Abu Dhabi faces accusations of backing the RSF with weapons and mercenaries – a claim it has repeatedly denied.
A Call for Arms Embargo
Speaking at the UNSC open session, the independent political analyst, Cameron Hudson, warned of the “enormous threat” facing the Sudanese State and people, urging an expanded arms embargo on Sudan.
Hudson noted that the RSF crimes since the takeover of El-Fasher city in late October represent the “worst transgressions” of the war, and possibly, all of Sudan’s modern history. “There simply is no comparison,” the political analyst said.
In the light of this, Hudson called for expanding the arms embargo to cover all Sudan, describing it as an “overdue requirement.” He also called for expanding UN sanctions on the arms suppliers and their accomplices who carry out these crimes.
