By: Chioma Madonna Ndukwu
Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, widely known as Hemedti and commander of Sudan’s paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), has been sworn in as the head of a rival government, escalating the country’s political turmoil.
According to the Sudanese Founding Alliance, a coalition dominated by the RSF, the swearing-in took place in Nyala, South Darfur’s capital. Abdelaziz Adam al-Hilu was named Dagalo’s deputy, while a 13-member presidential council was also inaugurated.
The coalition had first declared the creation of a parallel administration on July 26 after signing a political charter in Kenya earlier in the year—a move denounced by Sudan’s official authorities in Khartoum.
The United Nations Security Council has since rejected the RSF-backed initiative, describing it as a violation of Sudan’s sovereignty, independence, and territorial integrity.
Sudan has been engulfed in war since April 2023, when fighting broke out between the RSF and the Sudanese army. The conflict has claimed over 20,000 lives and displaced more than 14 million people, according to the UN. Independent studies from US universities, however, estimate the death toll at closer to 130,000.
Dagalo’s oath of office highlights the RSF’s growing bid for legitimacy in areas under its control, even as international bodies warn that such parallel structures could further fracture Sudan and prolong the devastating war.
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