Hemeti… after all of this, you’re still crying!!!

By Mini Arko Minawi

I listened to Hemeti’s speech, and I would like to comment on the part that concerns me in the following:
Hemeti said that the Chadian president called him on the first day of the war, asking him not to ignite the war in the city of El Fasher because it hosts displaced persons and refugees.
In fact, this is the first time I hear this statement, and I would say: the war began simultaneously across Sudan, including El Fasher. You, of all people, know that your commander, Abu Shouk, was injured in El Fasher inside the 16th Division at exactly 10:00 a.m. on March 15, 2023. He entered while holding handcuffs in his left hand and a rifle in his right hand, demanding the division’s commander to surrender leadership, saying that “the hour has come.” He was coming from the governor’s office, who confirmed the handover of the state to him. He then took over the care of the deer within the governor’s residence until he returned from the leadership.
As for the Chadian president, I was the one who asked him to inform Hemeti not to transfer the war to Darfur, not just El Fasher. El Fasher is not the only city with displaced persons camps; there are also camps in Nyala, including Kalma and Otash, which are among the largest camps. Moreover, in Zalingei, there are three large camps, the most notable being Hamidiya and Hassahisa.
As for Geneina, it’s a complete disaster, with camps that have been destroyed more than three times by your forces under the guise of civil war. Your forces ravaged the entire region both before and after the war began. In the city of Kutum, your forces attacked the Kassab camp for displaced persons before assaulting the command of the brigade in Kutum. In Ed Daein, there is the Neim camp for displaced persons, and in Tawila, the entire village, including the market and the displaced persons camp, was destroyed. So, the question here is: which part of Darfur is free of displaced persons camps, and why should El Fasher be exempt just because of these camps?
The second matter: after your forces began attacking El Fasher on April 15, the first place they took over was the children’s hospital in the Al-Masani neighborhood, where you caused destruction and set up cannons. This forced the doctors to transfer the children to the Babiker Nahar Health Center in the Al-Wahda neighborhood, which is now also occupied by your forces, alongside citizens’ homes, schools, and the remaining hospitals. On what grounds do you talk about war and ethics? Are these civilian or military institutions? You deliberately targeted hospitals, schools, and civilian gathering areas. So where are the 23 attacks you claim Minawi’s forces launched against you, and in which locations did they occur? How, where, and when did your attacks take place?
You’ve positioned your cannons in civilian areas, while citizens are living in the open after being expelled by your forces.
Not long ago, during my meeting with your brother in N’Djamena, I rejected his proposal to divide the leadership of the army factions in Darfur while keeping me as governor with more powers and larger funding. I rejected this despite the offer (of greater funding—why would I accept crumbs from Port Sudan if we were supposedly after money, abandoning nationalism?).
It would’ve been better if you hadn’t spoken of buying and selling loyalty because there’s much I haven’t mentioned.
Hemeti wonders, feigning the innocence of a child in front of the international community: “Why did you destroy our country?” This is indeed a valid question on the minds of all patriotic Sudanese. If this question has just occurred to you, you should immediately take the initiative to stop the war, end the destruction, thefts, and looting, and expel all foreigners from our land, with a full commitment to returning what has been stolen.
Regarding Hemeti’s comment to me (You shouldn’t involve our people in problems because your father, my father, your brother, my brother, your mother, my mother, etc.), I say to you: this statement is returned to you. The truth is there was no need to involve the entire country in a problem. I was with you on April 13, 2023, just two days before the war, advising you. I will always remember what you said when we, me and those with me—mediators who are still alive—begged you not to ignite the war. We told you that the war would lead to complete collapse, but you had a different opinion. You said, “Whoever loves Khartoum so much can take it as ashes,” repeating, “So what if Khartoum burns? Furbronga burned, so why not Khartoum?” This was your talk in your house, and the witnesses are alive. So, with this intention, how can you attribute the destruction of El Fasher to me?
Regarding your statement that I entered the war for some ‘money,’ I say if my intention was to enter the war for money, I could have done so on February 14, the day I was offered huge sums of money, not just ‘some money,’ in exchange for joining the framework agreement and aligning with you. I could have taken what I wanted, but I refused—this offer didn’t come from you or Port Sudan but from the direct sponsor, and you know well how this offer was rejected. Don’t forget, you even personally offered a shy apology on their behalf.
So, how could I refuse to take the full coffers, only to come later and accept ‘some money’ from Port Sudan? I could have taken what I wanted and joined you, worked under your command, and sold my country. By what logic are you speaking, Hemeti?
You claimed I played the victim during the rebellion, while I was the oppressor. You are referring to the days of the revolution against the regime, the very same regime of the Islamists that you are now defending.
We were fighting the government, which you now claim to be against. It was a government that ended on April 11, 2019, thanks to the struggle that you now call rebellion. That government is now irrelevant, and we sacrificed many martyrs while you were its first line of defense, and its leader praised you as his protector.
In your statement directed to me (We spoke to you many times, but you entered the war…), yes, you did speak to me about standing with you, but is it necessary that I agree with you?
As for your comments (My father and your father, my brother and your brother, my mother and your mother, and that they all live in the same place…), I say to you, Hemeti, that I consider all the mothers of Sudan as my mothers—in the grieving Gezira, Sennar, Khartoum, and all of Darfur, including Geneina and the besieged El Fasher. Every inch of Sudan is my homeland, and they are all my mothers. Every father in Sudan is my father, and I am a son to the entire Sudanese people. I do not differentiate between Sudan’s geography or its terrain. We stood to defend all the people of Sudan without exception, far from any tribalism, regionalism, or racism. We were forced to defend every woman who has been raped, preyed upon, or humiliated by your militias—all of them are my sisters and mothers. The men you killed are my fathers and brothers.
Finally, I urge you to reflect on the question you asked the international community: Why did you destroy our country? You are now waking up from your coma. Take a patriotic initiative, burn all external commitments, and save what remains of Sudan.