Sudan Accuses US of Denying Army Chief Visa, Urges End to Foreign Interference

Sudan's foreign minister used the UN General Assembly podium to criticise the United States for refusing a visa to the country's army chief, Gen. Abdel-Fattah Burhan, preventing him from attending the high-level segment of the annual gathering.

"The host country prevented this by failing to issue the appropriate visa for His Excellency to participate in the high-level segment," Foreign Minister Mohieldin Salim Ahmed Ibrahim told the assembly. He said the situation had persisted despite efforts by the UN secretary-general.

The visa was withheld amid disagreements over a proposed ceasefire intended to halt the war between Sudan's military and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces, according to people familiar with the matter.

In his address, Ibrahim also pressed for an end to outside involvement in the conflict, calling for a halt to the flow of weapons, ammunition and foreign fighters into Sudan. He said a durable settlement requires that such support stop and that armed groups be disarmed, with weapons held exclusively under state control.

"The just solution in Sudan, which ensures that the conflict does not reignite, requires halting the continuous foreign interventions," he said, adding that the terrorist militia must stop attacking civilians, cities, civilian facilities, infrastructure, dams, medical centres and hospitals.

Sudan has been mired in war between the army and the RSF since April 2023. A UN-backed investigation this month found that foreign support networks have supplied fighters, weapons and military technology that have helped sustain the conflict, which has displaced millions of people.