KHARTOUM — Sudan's army chief Gen. Abdel Fattah al-Burhan on Saturday publicly rejected American pressure tied to his withheld U.S. visa, telling a rally at Khartoum Stadium that the Sudanese Armed Forces would keep fighting until the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces are destroyed. The message was unmistakable: Burhan rejects US pressure, vows to destroy the RSF, and will not trade Sudanese sovereignty for a seat at the United Nations. The defiance, days after Reuters reported Washington is withholding his visa over a proposed ceasefire, effectively slams the door on a U.S.-backed 90-day truce.
What he said: Burhan Khartoum stadium speech September 2026
Addressing the stadium crowd on September 26, 2026, Burhan declared: “We will neither be humiliated nor subjugated by anyone, and we seek no one's approval,” according to Sudan Horizon. He mocked the visa lever directly: “Those who try to intimidate us with visas are delusional,” Demócrata reported. “They think they can pressure us into selling our sovereignty. They must know that the Sudanese people do not sell their sovereignty, their land, or their wealth.” The crowd chanted “Allahu Akbar” and “One army, one people,” Demócrata reported. The speech echoed an earlier Burhan line quoted by Demócrata: “Our compass is victory — not the Security Council, not the Quartet, not the truce.”
The Sudan army chief UNGA visa dispute
The rally came four days after Reuters reported on September 22 that the United States is withholding Burhan's visa to attend the UN General Assembly over a U.S. ceasefire plan. Reuters attributed the account to a U.S. State Department adviser and four diplomatic sources: Washington presented a 90-day truce proposal on August 1, and Burhan declined an invitation to meet on September 11. The visa hold was the pressure point — and Saturday's speech was Burhan's public answer. Signal Post News previously detailed the visa dispute and proposed ceasefire.
Why this matters for Sudan's war and ceasefire hopes
Publicly burning the visa-for-truce bargain weakens Washington's main leverage over Burhan and throws his in-person UNGA appearance into doubt. It also darkens the outlook for the 90-day truce the U.S. has been pushing, just as the UN refugee agency warns the humanitarian window is closing: UNHCR's Sudan appeal seeks more than $117 million for Chad alone, where over 900,000 Sudanese refugees have arrived in a 20-fold surge, and the agency has urged a truce before the rainy season cuts off aid routes. Signal Post News has more on the UNHCR Sudan appeal and call for a truce.
Background: a war in its third year (Sudan civil war ceasefire 2026)
Fighting erupted in April 2023 between the Sudanese Armed Forces, led by Burhan, and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) led by Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, known as Hemedti. Roughly 12 million people have been displaced and famine conditions have taken hold in parts of the country. The army has since recaptured Khartoum; reporting describes the SAF as holding roughly the eastern two-thirds of Sudan with the RSF dominant in the western third. The U.S. Treasury sanctioned Hemedti on January 7, 2025, over genocide allegations. Both sides have been accused of atrocities against civilians.
Winners, losers, and critics
Burhan's hardline camp is emboldened; the speech plays to supporters who back a military finish to the war. The RSF's battlefield position is unchanged by rhetoric. U.S. and Quad diplomacy — the Quad Sudan peace roadmap — emerges weakened, its leverage publicly spurned. Sudanese civilians, confronting a Sudan humanitarian crisis with 12 million displaced, bear the cost of a prolonged fight. Regional patrons on both sides face a longer, costlier war. The immediate balance in the RSF Rapid Support Forces Sudan conflict, however, is not changed by a speech.
What happens next (US Sudan 90-day truce plan)
- Burhan skips UNGA in person, addressing it by video or sending a delegate.
- The Quad pursues a truce framework without his buy-in, limiting its reach.
- Fighting intensifies in Kordofan and Darfur, including around the besieged city of El-Fasher.
What we don't know
No independent full transcript of the stadium speech has been published; Reuters has not independently confirmed the Saturday address; Burhan's visa status remains unresolved; and the rally's size could not be verified. This article attributes direct quotes to the outlets that reported them.