Declare unconditional cease-fire, Ruto tells Sudan's warring factions

President William Ruto has urged the warring factions in Sudan to declare an unconditional ceasefire.

Speaking on Monday in Ethiopia, Ruto said that the ceasefire will prevent additional loss of lives over the conflicts.

He also rooted for the establishment of a humanitarian zone.

“This will lay the foundation for a peaceful, stable and prosperous Sudan," Ruto said.

The Head of State said the move will stop the loss of lives, ease access to public services and facilitate a settlement of the conflict.

Ruto also pointed out, the move will lead to the resumption of the final phase of the political process.

The Head of State was speaking in Addis Ababa during the IGAD Quartet Heads of State and Government meeting that focussed on the Sudan conflict.

Other than Kenya, South Sudan, Ethiopia, and Djibouti are also part of the peace meeting

Going further, President Ruto who also chairs the IGAD Quartet, termed the situation in Sudan as dire with data indicating that over 2.9 million people have been displaced.

The death toll currently  stands at more than 2,000 as the crisis exerts more pressure on neighbouring countries.

“The intensity and scale of the humanitarian crisis is a harrowing calamity,” Ruto noted.

He added, targeted inter-ethnic attacks were steadily spiraling towards the commission of genocide.

“This alarming state of affairs calls for a bold and all-inclusive peace dialogue," Ruto said.

Also present in the meeting were Prime Minister of Ethiopia Abiy Ahmed, IGAD Executive Secretary Workneh Gebeyehu, UN Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator, Martin Griffiths, Djibouti Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation Mahamoud Ali Youssouf and representatives from South Sudan and rival factions.

The meeting comes even after Sudan rejected the appointment of President Ruto as head of a quartet to facilitate peace under the regional bloc, Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD).

Sudan's Army General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan opposed Ruto's chairmanship, stating that Kenya was not neutral and continues to harbor leaders of the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) rebels.

Kenya was elected as Chair of the IGAD quartet to resolve issues in Sudan on June 12, 2023, in Djibouti.

Sudan also rejected the IGAD mediation schedule, which would have seen Ruto arrange for a face-to-face meeting, for the first time, between the two warring generals.

Ruto, however, dismissed the allegations that the Rapid Support Forces leader Gen Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, also known as Hemedti, is in Kenya.

"The main accusation against Kenya is that we have Hemedti in one of our hospitals in Nairobi which is not true. It is a whole false narrative," he said.

Ruto has always insisted the war in Sudan was unacceptable, adding there were already signs of genocide.