Sudanese general meets Sisi in Cairo as power talks resume

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi met in Cairo on Monday with the powerful Sudanese military general Mohamed Hamdan Daglo, whose forces have been accused of brutally suppressing protesters.

During his first official visit to the Egyptian capital, the deputy head of the Sudanese military council, widely known as Hemeti, "presented the latest developments on the situation in Sudan," the Egyptian presidency said.

Sisi, the former general-turned-president, reiterated Egypt's "strategic support" to maintain "stability and security" of its neighbor, Sudan, the presidency said.

Cairo is an unwavering ally of Khartoum's military leaders after the overthrow of long-time autocrat Omar al-Bashir on April 11 after months of protests.

Hemeti, commander of the rapid support forces – the dreaded paramilitary group accused of war crimes in Darfur under Bashir – also lent support to the Gulf allies during a meeting with the Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia, Mohammed bin Salman, in May.

Triggered in December with the tripling of the price of bread, the protests in Sudan quickly turned into a challenge to the Bashir regime, which has been in power for 30 years.

The demonstrations continued after his ouster to claim a civil regime.

On June 3, at least 127 protesters were killed and many injured during a raid on a sit-in at the epicenter of the protests, according to doctors linked to the protest movement.

A joint investigation by prosecutors and the ruling military council in Sudan showed that security forces, including an RSF general, were participating in the raid on the protest camp, although no orders from their superiors ordered him.

Hemeti has always denied the involvement of his men in the crackdown that has provoked the indignation of the international community.

The general's meeting with Sissi comes a day after the Sudanese police fired tear gas at many demonstrators demanding an independent investigation into the June raid.

On 17 July, Sudanese protesters and ruling generals signed a power-sharing agreement aimed at forming a joint civil-military ruling body that would in turn establish a civilian regime.

Discussions should resume Tuesday to resolve the remaining issues between the two parties.