Sudan’s Secret Envoy to Israel: Al-Burhan Seeks Support Amid Civil War
In a bold bid for survival, Sudan’s leader reopens normalization talks with Israel, offering full cooperation in exchange for political and military backing.
Watan-In a controversial political development, Sudanese military sources have revealed a secret visit by Al-Sadiq Ismail, envoy of Sudan’s Sovereign Council head Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, to Israel, aimed at reviving the stalled normalization process between Khartoum and Tel Aviv.
According to reports, Ismail conveyed al-Burhan’s desire to move forward with signing the Abraham Accords, in exchange for receiving Israeli political and military support in the coming phase.
This Sudanese move comes at a highly sensitive time, as Sudan remains embroiled in a civil war—now entering its second year—between the army and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF). It appears al-Burhan is seeking to gain international leverage through Tel Aviv, offering full normalization in return for guaranteed military and political backing.
Notably, al-Burhan made it clear in the message delivered by his envoy that his recent pivot toward Iran was driven solely by international isolation and Israel’s failure to meet his military needs, at a time when his forces were in urgent need of weapons. He reportedly expressed surprise at Tel Aviv’s anger over this shift, despite what he described as Israel’s negligence.
Al-Burhan Resurrects Normalization for Political Survival
Historically, this move isn’t entirely unexpected. Al-Burhan had met with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Uganda in February 2020, where they announced the beginning of normalization talks under UAE mediation. However, Sudan’s volatile internal situation and widespread public opposition to normalization prevented the agreement from being finalized.
Now, amid growing regional pressures, it appears that al-Burhan is reactivating the normalization file with the Israeli occupation in hopes of securing short-term gains that could strengthen his position in Sudan’s internal power struggle. According to sources, the current Sudan-Israel deal includes Khartoum’s commitment to fulfill all Israeli conditions within a short time frame, in exchange for Israeli efforts to promote al-Burhan to the U.S. administration and break his international isolation.
The secret visit and its promises clearly signal that Sudan is moving forward with a normalization path that observers have described as a “shameful deal,” particularly as the occupation continues its aggression against the Palestinian people.
