Why Sudan Slams Uganda for Hosting RSF Chief Amid Rising Tensions

Sudan’s government has sharply criticized Uganda for hosting the commander of the rival paramilitary Rapid Support Forces, denouncing the reception he received from President Yoweri Museveni as an “affront to humanity.”

Mohammed Hamdan Dagalo, commonly known as Hemeti, met with Museveni at Entebbe’s State House on Friday. The visit came just one day after a United Nations probe found that his forces had committed acts of genocide in Darfur—a finding that added grave weight to an already tense diplomatic moment.

The Context of Conflict

Since April 2023, Sudan has been consumed by war between the Sudanese military, led by army chief Gen. Abdel Fattah Al-Burhan, and the RSF, commanded by Al-Burhan’s former deputy. The conflict has killed tens of thousands, displaced millions, and created one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises.

The UN’s genocide determination represents the most serious international condemnation yet of the RSF’s actions in Darfur, a region already scarred by earlier atrocities. Against this backdrop, Hemeti’s reception by a foreign head of state carries significant diplomatic weight.

Sudan’s Response

Sudan’s Foreign Ministry issued a strong statement Sunday, noting that the RSF’s atrocities had been “documented by the international community and condemned by regional organizations of which Uganda is a member,” including the African Union and the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD).

The ministry’s language—”affront to humanity”—reflects the depth of Khartoum’s anger at what it perceives as legitimization of a force accused of genocide. For a government at war, seeing its adversary hosted by a neighboring president is both diplomatic setback and political insult.

Hemeti’s Diplomatic Offensive

Hemeti, speaking during his visit, offered his own framing. He said he traveled to Uganda after Museveni was approached by the Sudanese army seeking his mediation—a claim that, if true, would complicate the narrative of Ugandan bias. The RSF commander also called for Africa-led mediation, stating: “From the first day of the war, we said negotiations must be African. Peace should be made in Africa: IGAD and the African Union.”

The visit marked Hemeti’s second meeting with Museveni. His first, in December 2023, was part of a regional tour that analysts interpreted as an effort to bolster his legitimacy with African leaders. Since then, he has declared a rival administration in Darfur, though it has received no international recognition.

Regional Complications

Hemeti’s visit came just a week after Museveni hosted Malik Agar, Al-Burhan’s deputy in the ruling Transitional Sovereignty Council. Uganda’s engagement with both sides suggests a balancing act rather than simple alignment—but for Khartoum, the optics of hosting the RSF chief after a genocide finding overshadow any diplomatic nuance.

The African Union and IGAD, which have sought to mediate the conflict, now face additional complications. Uganda’s hospitality toward a leader whose forces have been condemned for genocide puts pressure on regional bodies to respond, even as they struggle to find a path to peace.

What It Means

For Sudan’s government, Uganda’s hosting of Hemeti is a betrayal by a neighbor and fellow regional actor. For the RSF, it is diplomatic validation at a critical moment. For the African Union and IGAD, it is a challenge to their authority and a test of their willingness to hold members accountable.

For the people of Darfur, who have lived through decades of violence and now face new atrocities, the diplomatic maneuvering in Entebbe may feel distant from their daily struggle for survival. But the reception Hemeti received sends a message—intended or not—about how the international community responds to allegations of genocide.

As the war continues and the death toll mounts, the question of who legitimizes whom among African leaders will remain central. For now, Sudan has made its position clear: hosting the RSF chief is not diplomacy. It is an affront.

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