UAE sells arms to Sudan warring parties – Military Africa

In recent years, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) has been supplying weapons to the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) and the Sudanese army, which are involved in the conflict in Sudan. This has raised concerns about the UAE’s role in the conflict and its implications for stability in the region.

The RSF is a paramilitary force formed in 2013 under the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF). Its main objectives are to maintain internal security and combat terrorism in Sudan. However, the force has been accused of violating the human rights of civilians in Darfur and elsewhere in the country.

The Sudanese Army, on the other hand, is the main branch of the Sudanese Armed Forces and is responsible for defending the country’s borders and maintaining internal security. The army has also become embroiled in conflicts within Sudan, including ongoing clashes in Blue Nile and Southern Kordofan states.

The UAE has reportedly been supplying weapons to the RSF and the Sudanese army since 2014. The weapons reportedly included small arms, ammunition and armored vehicles. The UAE also reportedly trained RSF members in the use of these weapons.

The weapons provided to both sides included M05 rifles produced by Zastava, Nimr Ajbans Armored Vehicle (RSF)and the Calidus MCAV (used by the Sudanese army), and on Tuesday, footage emerged of a thermobaric round apparently supplied to the RSF by the United Arab Emirates and seized by the military. The video shows boxes of 120mm thermobaric bombs with markings indicating they were manufactured in Serbia in 2020 and later supplied to the UAE.

The UAE’s support for the Rapid Support Forces and the Sudanese army has drawn criticism from human rights groups and other groups, who accuse the UAE of fueling conflict and human rights abuses by the forces. The UAE defended its actions, saying it was committed to maintaining peace and stability in the region.

The UAE’s involvement in the Sudanese conflict is nothing new.the state has stepped in Yemen conflict since 2015, which has been supporting the Saudi-led coalition with weapons and military personnel. The UAE is also involved in the conflict in Libya, supporting the Libyan National Army.

according to belling cat, the Sudanese army and the RSF are fighting alongside the UAE and Saudi forces in Yemen. This is mostly happening in southern Yemen. However, Sudanese troops have also been deployed to the Saudi border to prevent Houthi incursions. RSF leader and former Janjaweed leader Mohamed Hamdan “Hemeti” Dagolo is responsible for sending troops to guard the Saudi-Yemen border, according to the BBC.

In 2015, the Sudanese government agreed to send a regular army battalion under the command of General Abdul Fattah al-Burhan to serve alongside the Saudi-Emirati coalition forces in Yemen. However, the UAE later struck a separate deal with Hemedti to send additional RSF fighter units to fight in southern Yemen and along the Tahama plains, including the port city of Hodeidah, which had seen heavy fighting the year before. Hemedti also provides troops to help guard Saudi Arabia’s border with Yemen. As a result, the RSF’s strength has grown tenfold, and all its generals are Darfurian Arabs who share the Dagolo name. With 70,000 troops and more than 10,000 armed pickup trucks, the RSF has become Sudan’s de facto infantry and the only force capable of controlling the streets of the capital, Khartoum, and other cities.

Since December 2018, the city of Nyala in the Darfur region has become the main departure point for Sudanese troops heading to Saudi Arabia. Overall, the Darfur region has been a recruiting ground for RSF.

Furthermore, a survey found global witness RSF bought more than 1,000 vehicles from dealerships in the UAE in the first six months of 2019, it showed. The cargo included more than 900 Toyota Hilux and Land Cruisers, which the RSF often converted into “techniques” — 4×4 military vehicles armed with machine guns. The militia received more than 150 million dirhams ($40 million) in “technical support” from unknown sources and used more than 111 million dirhams ($30 million) to buy vehicles and communications equipment.

The UAE’s role in the conflicts in Sudan, Yemen and Libya has raised concerns about its ambitions in the region and its impact on the stability of those countries. The country’s actions have also drawn criticism from other countries, including the United States, which has raised concerns about the UAE’s human rights record.

Selling arms to Sudan’s warring parties would damage the UAE’s credibility as a neutral mediator.

“Washington’s assertion that the UAE, as part of the quartet, is a partner in the quest for peace in Sudan must increasingly be viewed with suspicion,” said Cameron Hudson, a former CIA official and expert on Sudan.

Quad is the British, American, Saudi and UAE, an attempt to execute on the Sudanese Army and RSF 2021 coup.

The UAE supplies weapons to the Rapid Support Forces and the Sudanese army, raising concerns about its role in the conflict and its impact on stability in the region. While the UAE has defended its actions, its involvement in multiple conflicts in the region has drawn criticism and calls for greater transparency and accountability. As the conflict in Sudan continues, it remains to be seen how the UAE’s actions will affect the situation on the ground and in the wider region.

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