The chairman of the media committee of the Joint Darfur Forces said more troops have been deployed at the western gates and all entrances and exits of El Fasher town in Sudan’s North Darfur State to maintain security and ensure the safety of convoys carrying essential supplies.
Three gunmen were killed and five others were injured when suspected highway robbers attacked a convoy of trucks that was moving from Kosti in White Nile State to El Fasher on Friday afternoon in the Al Koma area.
Major Ahmed Hussein Adrob told Radio Tamazuj on Monday that their position is completely neutral on this “ridiculous” war between the army and paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) that set fire to Sudan and Darfur and claimed the lives of ordinary citizens.
He indicates that they must protect the convoys coming from Kosti and Kufra while coordinating with both sides in the conflict.
“The joint forces were deployed at all the western and eastern gates of El Fasher and its 18 localities and at the entrance from Kosti, Al-Koma, Kufra, El-Obeid, and all the roads that lead to the state and the various gates until the convoys reach all of the Darfur regions,” he explained.
According to Maj. Adrob, the attack on the convoy was carried out by unruly people who did not belong to the Al-Koma area, and their goal was to create tension and a divide between the joint forces and the people.
He added, “The decision of the governor of the Darfur region, Minni Arko Minawi, was clear, frank, and strict about the tasks of the committee, which include stopping attacks on citizens and protecting markets and commercial and humanitarian convoys.”
Adrob stated that the joint forces are planning to hold a series of meetings with all civil administrations and all civil society leaders in Darfur, stressing the necessity of cooperation and rejecting racism.
“The bloody war in Sudan since 15 April has plunged the country into a dark tunnel and its continuation will lead to the loss of our beloved Sudan,” Adrob observed. “Therefore, it must be stopped and we must work to build a Sudan that accommodates everyone through dialogue.”
On 27 April, the forces that signed the Juba Peace Agreement, namely the Sudan Liberation Movement led by Minawi, the Justice and Equality Movement led by Jibril Ibrahim, the Sudanese Alliance, the Sudan Liberation Movement – Transitional Council, and the Sudan Liberation Forces Association, established a joint force concerned with maintaining security in the Darfur region following the security vacuum created by the fighting between the army and the RSF.