Sudan’s al-Burhan pledges immunity for dialogue, rules out Hemedti return

Sudan’s Sovereign Council chief and army commander Abdel Fattah al-Burhan has pledged temporary immunity and legal, political and security guarantees for participants in a Sudanese dialogue to be managed by an independent national mechanism.

Speaking early on Saturday during celebrations marking the 72nd anniversary of the Sudanese Armed Forces, al-Burhan said criminal proceedings against participants facing charges would be temporarily suspended while they take part in the dialogue, without affecting the rights of those who filed complaints against them.

Al-Burhan said measures taken by the state regarding any dialogue participant would not amount to a pardon, but rather a temporary suspension of criminal proceedings against those facing charges. He said this would grant them temporary immunity while taking part in the dialogue without affecting the rights of those who had filed complaints.

He said the national dialogue should be an open-ended process conducted in a public space that allows society to express opinions and criticism without fear or restrictions.

He also pledged legal protection for the opinions and positions expressed by participants, saying statements made during dialogue sessions would not be used as grounds for legal prosecution.

Al-Burhan said a group of Sudanese figures had independently proposed the initiative and would oversee the dialogue. He stressed that the state would not organise the process or determine its agenda or outcomes.

Sources told Al Jazeera that the national mechanism is expected to hold a news conference in the coming days to present its vision and plans for the political process.

On the war, al-Burhan said the army was ready to engage with any serious peace initiative but would not accept what he called an “incomplete peace” that returned the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), led by Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, known as Hemedti, and its supporters to power.