The Sudanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced on Saturday Khartoum's rejection of the phone call from the United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres to the leader of the Rapid Support Forces, Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo "Hemedti".

This came during the meeting of the Sudanese Foreign Minister Ali Al-Sadiq with Guterres' special envoy, Ramatan Al-Amamra, in the city of Port Sudan in the east of the country, according to the Sudanese News Agency "SUNA".

The agency reported that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs informed Al-Amamra of Sudan's rejection of Guterres' phone call to the rebel Hemedti.

The agency did not mention the arrival date of the UN envoy to Sudan nor the duration of his visit.

The official agency quoted Minister Al-Sadiq as saying: "We informed the UN envoy that the call caused great anger and rejection in the Sudanese street, and we reject this call with the leader of a movement (referring to the commander of the Rapid Support Forces) who committed terrible violations condemned by some UN bodies and the majority of the international community."

The Sudanese minister added that such a call gives the rebel legitimacy that he lacks and achieves his goals in obtaining media propaganda.

On Friday, Hemedti said via his account on the X platform that he discussed during a phone call with Guterres the situation in Sudan, the negative effects resulting from the war, and ways to alleviate the humanitarian suffering of civilians.

Since mid-April 2023, the Sudanese army and Rapid Support Forces have been engaged in a war that has left more than 12,000 dead and over 7 million displaced and refugees, according to the United Nations