Hamdok and the London Confusion

By: Babiker Ismail

I attended Hamdok’s seminar at the Thistle Hotel in Marble Arch, London, on the evening of Wednesday, October 30, 2024. Attendees were meticulously selected, with only pre-registered individuals allowed entry.

The event was scheduled to run from 7:30 PM to 10 PM. However, an angry crowd of bereaved families, protesting the perceived complicity of the Forces of Freedom and Change (FFC) leadership with the Janjaweed, delayed Hamdok’s entry. His security team struggled to escort him out through the hotel’s back entrance, sparing him from the furious crowd. Due to this incident, the event was delayed by two hours and ten minutes, finally starting at 9:40 PM.

I noticed a notable absence of young people; only two or three attendees seemed to be in their twenties. I estimated the average age of attendees to be between 57 and 58. This was evident from the woman sitting in front of me, who wore a traditional toub from the 1970s, and another man wearing a hat reminiscent of colonial-era public health officials. A woman in the audience voiced this sentiment by asking Hamdok why the youth no longer supported him, saying, “They’ve lost faith in you because you abandoned them by resigning as Prime Minister. How can they trust you again?” Hamdok, however, offered no adequate response.

Hamdok’s mental presence was lackluster, and his speech seemed dull. He spoke for only seven minutes, briefly responding to questions. When asked about Hemeti’s claim that the Framework Agreement sparked the war, he deferred, saying others were better equipped to answer.

At one point, an attendee shouted, “How much did FFC sell our blood for?” This caused tension, leading others to chant, “Crush every Kizan!” Security escorted the man who had shouted out of the hall.

When questioned about the UAE’s military support for the militia faction led by his political wing, Hamdok responded that “Sudan cannot be an isolated island in the global ocean,” which, in other words, suggested that Hamdok was comfortable with the UAE’s military support for the militia he leads.

The following afternoon, Thursday, October 31, 2024, I attended a protest organized by honorable Sudanese in front of Chatham House, near Buckingham Palace, in central London. This protest was held to oppose Hamdok’s participation in a Chatham House seminar about Sudan.

In contrast to the tense atmosphere at Marble Arch, the St. James Square gathering was filled with hope and energy, predominantly led by young Sudanese. Some wore Sudanese military attire, waving Sudan’s flag high and chanting, “One army, one people!” Their drums echoed, chanting, “Today, Hamdok’s supporters have fled.”

They came from all corners of Britain, representing Sudan’s victims and standing with the bereaved, who were attacked by merciless militias led by Hemeti and politically supported by Hamdok.

Dr. Abdalla Hamdok is now the de facto leader of the Janjaweed militia, as described by former Rapid Support Forces (RSF) advisor Yaqoub Al-Damouki. Hamdok entered Chatham House through his preferred back entrance, wary and nervous. He came to consult with Rosalind Marsden, the shrewd veteran known for her support of RSF interests, and to coordinate on the militia’s next steps. The aim was for Britain to push for a no-fly zone over the Sudanese army at the upcoming UN Security Council session, which Britain will chair starting November 2024.

Hamdok and his despondent allies—Khalid Silik, Omar Manis, and others who have sold their souls to global imperialism—will ultimately fail. Their desperate alignment with foreign imperialists will be the beginning of a perpetual exile, wandering through hostile capitals conspiring against our people. The Sudanese people will rise, liberating their towns, villages, and countryside, emerging victorious from this brutal war. The traitors’ feet will never again touch Sudan’s pure soil, leaving them to wander foreign lands, bearing their defeat, licking their wounds. And Hamdok’s followers will be cast out, like impurities that cannot take root in a land of pride, dignity, and honor.