In a wide-ranging interview, Dr. Abdulrahman Hassan Saeed, Secretary-General of the Revolutionary Awakening Council and a senior adviser to Sheikh Musa Hilal, offered his perspective on the origins of Sudan’s current conflict, the rise of the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), the future of negotiations, and what he believes will be required to rebuild the country after the war.
During the interview, Saeed discussed the council’s political evolution, its relationship with former President Omar al-Bashir’s government, the emergence of RSF commander Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo (“Hemedti”), and the military and political dynamics that have shaped Sudan’s conflict. He declined to answer several operational questions, citing ongoing security concerns.
Throughout the interview, Saeed stressed that his views reflect the position of the Revolutionary Awakening Council.
From Reform Movement to Political Organization
According to Saeed, the Revolutionary Awakening Council began in 2007 as a reform initiative advocating political, economic, and social change in Darfur while seeking solutions to the region’s armed conflict.
He said the movement campaigned against corruption within the state and increasingly found itself at odds with the ruling National Congress Party despite Sheikh Musa Hilal’s advisory role within the federal government.
“The Sheikh has always been an independent figure,” Saeed said. “He did not believe in political subordination, and he openly criticized corruption and government policies.”
According to Saeed, relations deteriorated further after 2013, when the government established the Rapid Support Forces as a new security structure.
The Revolutionary Awakening Council was formally launched as a political organization in January 2014.
The Rise of the RSF
Saeed argued that the RSF was initially created by the government as a counterweight to existing security formations, including the Border Guards, which he said had operated under the Sudanese Armed Forces since 2002.
He maintained that Sheikh Musa Hilal repeatedly warned former President Omar al-Bashir against concentrating power in the hands of Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, known as Hemedti.
According to Saeed, Hilal cautioned that empowering a parallel military structure outside the traditional command of the Sudanese Armed Forces would eventually destabilize the country.
He said mediation efforts involving Professor Ibrahim Ghandour attempted to resolve growing tensions between Hilal and al-Bashir, but those efforts ultimately failed.
Saeed alleged that Hilal was later arrested on charges of rebellion and conspiracy, detained for more than three years, and that many members of the Border Guards were absorbed into the RSF.
The Juba Peace Agreement
Saeed said the Revolutionary Awakening Council expected to participate in the 2020 Juba Peace Agreement because of its influence in Darfur.
According to him, Sudan Liberation Movement leader Minni Arko Minnawi supported the council’s participation, while Hemedti opposed its inclusion.
He argued that the exclusion of the council limited the agreement’s ability to represent all significant political and tribal constituencies in Darfur.
Negotiations After the War
Asked about prospects for future negotiations, Saeed said any successful political settlement must first establish who the government is actually negotiating with.
“Who is the negotiating partner?” he asked. “Is it the RSF leadership, political organizations aligned with it, or external actors accused of supporting the conflict?”
He argued that negotiations should distinguish between individuals who served within Sudan’s official security institutions before April 15, 2023, and foreign fighters who allegedly entered the conflict afterward.
According to Saeed, individuals accused of committing war crimes should remain subject to prosecution regardless of any future political settlement, while broader questions of amnesty would remain matters for the Sudanese state.
Hemedti and the RSF
Throughout the interview, Saeed was sharply critical of Hemedti and the RSF leadership.
He argued that the organization grew rapidly through state support before becoming an independent political and military force. He also alleged that the group’s economic influence expanded through access to wartime resources, gold mining, and cross-border commercial activities.
Many of these assertions reflect Saeed’s personal assessment and have been the subject of broader political debate within Sudan.
Asked about Hemedti’s current whereabouts, Saeed said he could not confirm reports placing the RSF commander in any particular location since the war began.
The War in Darfur
Saeed said he believes the conflict has shifted strategically as supply lines into Darfur have come under increasing pressure.
According to him, RSF redeployments into other regions represent attempts to stretch government forces rather than indications of expanding military control.
He predicted that once fighting subsides in Kordofan, the balance of the conflict in Darfur will also change, though he acknowledged that the region remains one of the war’s most volatile theaters.
A Vision Beyond the Conflict
Despite his criticism of the RSF, Saeed repeatedly returned to the subject of reconciliation.
He said Sudan would eventually require transitional justice, national reconciliation, and institutional reform rather than collective punishment based on tribal affiliation.
“No tribe should be blamed for the actions of individuals,” he said, arguing that accountability should remain focused on those responsible for specific crimes.
For Saeed, rebuilding Sudan will require restoring confidence in national institutions while ensuring that justice and reconciliation advance together.
Whether that vision can be achieved remains one of the central questions facing Sudan as it looks beyond the current war.
