General Mohamed Hamdan (Hemedti) Daglo said that Sudan may be a source of waves of migrants to Europe, stressing that the Sudanese government will control the refugees from Sudan, for the time being.

Hemedti spoke in an interview with “Politko”, the European version, conducted with him by Mattei Ruska, saying that Europe will face an influx of refugees from Sudan if it does not support the new government under the leadership of the army. Hemedti said that Europe and the United States had no choice but to support the new government to prevent a refugee crisis, and pointed out that the Sudanese border was controlled and harassed by the Sudanese armed forces, which were criticized by the West for carrying out a military coup at the end of October.

Hemedti’s comments came amid turmoil in Sudan since the coup, in which Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok was placed under house arrest, leading to international condemnation. But last week the military restored him to his post through a power-sharing deal, a deal that neither halted the protests nor eased the uneasiness of Western allies.

In a video interview from Khartoum, Hemedti said: “Given our commitment to the international community and the law, we are limiting these people. And if Sudan opens the border, there will be a worldwide problem.”

The Sudanese general’s comments play on the international community’s concerns about refugees. There is a state of discontent among European countries over the influx of refugees, and they are trying to reduce the number of arrivals to them. The United States reduced its share of refugees under the administration of Donald Trump, before increasing the percentage at the beginning of this year.

Hemedti said that his message to Europe and the United States is to abandon their suspicions and deal with him and General Abdel Fattah Al-Burhan as a source of stability.

An international agency indicates that about 7 million Sudanese and South Sudanese have been forcibly displaced and live within the two countries or in the surrounding countries. Politico commented, saying that Hemedti, who holds the position of Deputy Al-Burhan, is not trusted by international circles. As a commander of the Rapid Support Forces, he linked Hemeti to war crimes and abuses, especially in Darfur.

During the meeting, Hemedti denied all these allegations, and considered them “fake news” campaigns. In general, there is suspicion from European allies that the Sudanese army has not handed over power to civilians as promised. The European Union and the United States condemned the coup, and Washington and the World Bank froze financial aid to the country, while the European Union threatened to do the same. On a previous occasion, the magazine quoted a spokesman for the High Representative of the European Union in the Horn of Africa as saying that the European bloc expressed its dissatisfaction directly with Hemedti and “the Union dealt in a bilateral manner (with Hemedti), and we sent, in this capacity and on a number of times, messages of support to the Sudanese people and the civilian government.” .

Hemedti is taking steps to ease international concerns. He pledged some time ago to hand Omar al-Bashir to the International Criminal Court, where the former leader faces charges of genocide in Darfur. In the interview with the magazine, Hemedti confirmed that the army will allow free elections in July 2023, describing the army’s recent seizure of power as a “corrective movement” for the transitional process. “We want elections, and the country needs an elected president,” he said, justifying the army’s recent move as a “duty” it had undertaken to prevent the “collapse” of Sudan.

He claimed that Sudan can help resolve the conflicts experienced by neighboring countries in Libya, Ethiopia, South Sudan and Eritrea, and claimed that Sudan and its army should be part of international discussions about the future of the region. He said: “These are our neighbors, we understand each other and we can contribute to the solution, and we can play a big role in resolving the conflict over Sudan because it is the center of the region.” He added, “Unfortunately, the international community has not given Sudan the attention it deserves in these major issues. Their efforts are appreciated, but I don’t think it will solve the problem.”

Apart from his military role, Hemedti has been the subject of scrutiny and consideration of his commercial activities. The Reuters news agency published a report in 2019 about a company owned by the Hemedti family, which transports quantities of gold in millions of dollars to Dubai, despite Al-Bashir’s criticism of filling his pockets with millions at the expense of the people. His office denied any connection between the general and the company. He has now pledged to stand with the Sudanese people, even though thousands of them are protesting against the army’s role in the government. His pledge has been put to the test in recent weeks amid several reports of violence being used against pro-democracy protesters.

The Sudanese Doctors’ Committee said at the beginning of last month that 10 protesters had been killed by security forces. Hemedti promised to conduct a “real investigation” into the matter and denied the army’s connection to the violence. Instead, he accused a “third party,” stressing that the army would not gain anything from this behavior.

He said: “In 2019, when we stood with the people, we provided protection to the peaceful demonstrators, otherwise millions of people would have fallen.” However, human rights organizations do not agree with Hemedti’s statements. It says that the army commanders bear the responsibility for the violence that was practiced against the demonstrators in the country during the past years.

“Over the past two years, only second-tier officials have been prosecuted in a few cases for the killing of protesters,” the magazine quoted Laetitia Bader, director of the Horn of Africa Program at Human Rights Watch. And “the past two months presented a stark picture of the delay in justice, and if this legacy is to be stopped, those responsible for the cycle of violations must not be allowed to go unpunished.” For Western allies, the situation will become more complicated. While Hamdok signed a power-sharing agreement with the army, the demonstrators rejected the move in a way that left the international community without a partner to support it.