General Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo aka Hemeti (left), with the chairman of the Sovereign Council, General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan. © Mahmoud Hjaj/Anadolu Agency via AFP

Sudan’s de facto leader General Abdel Fattah Al-Burhan reportedly said he is ready to meet his bitter rival, General Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo and hold talks on ending the war in Sudan.

According to James Pitia Morgan, South Sudan Minister of Foreign Affairs, General Al-Burhan made the remarks during the IGAD Heads of State Summit in Djibouti on Saturday.

Ambassador Morgan, who attended the summit on behalf of President Salva Kiir, said IGAD leaders pressed hard for a ceasefire in the war-torn country.

“All the Heads of State of IGAD have insisted very hard that this time around, the summit must not end without coming closer to silencing the guns in Sudan,” said Morgan in a statement.

Mr Morgan said Al-Burhan – the Chairman of Sudan’s Sovereign Council has agreed to meet Dagalo anywhere and at any time.

“In principle, General Abdel Fattah Al-Burhan has agreed that he is ready for ceasefire, and he is ready for peace talks.”

“He is also ready to sit and meet face to face with the head of the Rapid Support Forces, General Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo.”

Ambassador Morgan said the IGAD Heads of State have resolved to bring the planned meeting between the two rival commanders into context. RSF’s position on the possibility of a meeting between the two rival generals, is not yet clear.

General Burhan, the Commander-in-Chief of Sudan’s Armed Force, and General Dagalo of the Rapid Support Force, plunged their country into deadly conflict that has now taken eight months.

According to the Armed Conflict Location and Event Data Project and Sudan’s Health Ministry, at least 12,260 people have been killed since April 15 in the conflict in Sudan.

The United States has determined that warring factions in Sudan have committed war crimes, as it increases pressure on both sides to end fighting that has caused a humanitarian crisis.