Hemedti

General
Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo
محمد حمدان دقلو
Hemedti in 2022
Deputy Chairman of the Transitional Sovereignty Council
In office
11 November 2021 – 19 May 2023
ChairmanAbdel Fattah al-Burhan
Preceded byHimself
Succeeded byMalik Agar
In office
21 August 2019 – 25 October 2021
ChairmanAbdel Fattah al-Burhan
Preceded byHimself
Succeeded byHimself
Commander of the Rapid Support Forces
Incumbent
Assumed command
2013
Preceded byNew command
Deputy Chairman of the Transitional Military Council
In office
13 April 2019 – 20 August 2019
ChairmanAbdel Fattah al-Burhan
Preceded byKamal Abdel-Marouf al-Mahdi
Succeeded byPosition abolished
Personal details
Born
Mohammed Hamdan Dagalo

1974 or 1975[1] (age 48–49)[2]
First Republic of Chad[3][4][5]
NationalitySudanese
RelationsAbdelrahim Dagalo (brother)
Known forLeader of RSF during the Sudanese civil war (2023)
NicknameHemedti (Arabic: حميدتي)
Military service
Allegiance Sudan
Branch/service Rapid Support Forces
Rank General
CommandsHead of the RSF
Battles/warsWar in Darfur
2019 Sudanese coup d'état
2021 Sudanese coup d'état
Sudanese civil war (2023)

Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo (Arabic: محمد حمدان دقلو, romanized: Muḥammad Ḥamdān Daqlū, born 1974 or 1975), generally referred to mononymously as Hemedti[1] (Arabic: حميدتي, romanized: Ḥamīdtī; also spelled Hemetti[6] or Hemeti[7]; meaning "little Mohamed"),[8] is a Sudanese military officer and the current head of the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF). A Janjaweed leader from the Rizeigat tribe[9] in Darfur, he was the Deputy head of the Transitional Military Council (TMC) following the 2019 Sudanese coup d'état.[1] Since 2013,[10][11] Hemetti has commanded the RSF.[12][13] He was considered by The Economist to be the most powerful person in Sudan as of early July 2019.[14]

On 21 August 2019, the TMC transferred power to the civilian–military Transitional Sovereignty Council, of which Hemetti is a member.[15] Under Article 19 of the August 2019 Draft[needs update] Constitutional Declaration, Hemetti and the other Sovereignty Council members were to be ineligible to run in the 2022 Sudanese general election.[16][17] As of 2019, Hemeti was considered one of the richest people in Sudan via his company, al-Junaid, which had a wide array of business interests including investment, mining, transport, car rental, iron and steel.[18] On behalf of the Transitional Military Council, Hemetti signed a Political Agreement on 17 July 2019[19][20] and a Draft Constitutional Declaration on 4 August 2019, together with Ahmed Rabee on behalf of the Forces of Freedom and Change (FFC), as major steps in the 2019 Sudanese transition to democracy.[21] In September 2019, Hemetti helped negotiate a peace deal between groups in armed conflict in Port Sudan.[22]

Hemetti took part in the 2021 Sudan coup d'état, but has since distanced himself from it; in February 2023 he called it a "mistake". The comments were part of a growing rift between him and army leader Abdel Fattah al-Burhan.[23][24] In April 2023, Dagalo mobilized the RSF against al-Burhan's government, claiming to capture key government sites, though al-Burhan has disputed this.[25]

According to Human Rights Watch[26] and professor Eric Reeves,[27] the RSF[12][13] was responsible for crimes against humanity, including systematic killings of civilians and rapes, in Darfur in 2014 and 2015. Hemetti was also involved in the 23 November 2004 attack on the village of Adwa which resulted in a massacre and rape, and said that the attacks had been planned for months.[28] According to Al Jazeera and The Daily Beast, the Sudanese Transitional Military Council, headed by the RSF, holds major responsibility for the 3 June 2019 Khartoum massacre.[29][7]

  1. ^ a b c Cite error: The named reference TheNational_TMC_Hemedti was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ Cite error: The named reference smallarmssurvey_20170419 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ Cite error: The named reference :2 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  4. ^ Cite error: The named reference :0 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  5. ^ Cite error: The named reference :1 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  6. ^ Cite error: The named reference SudanDaily_Hemetti was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  7. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference Albaih_Hemeti was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  8. ^ Beaumont, Peter (2023-04-17). "Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo: the feared ex-warlord taking on Sudan's army". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2023-05-03.
  9. ^ Amin, Mohammed (29 July 2019). "Hemedti: From Camel herder to Sudan's de facto ruler". Anadolu Agency. Retrieved 12 September 2019.
  10. ^ Cite error: The named reference AJE_who_RSF_Hemeti was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  11. ^ Cite error: The named reference sudantribune_2014 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  12. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference eastafrican_wait_wings was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  13. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference sudandaily_aspirations was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  14. ^ "Protesters are back on the streets in Sudan". The Economist. 6 July 2019.
  15. ^ Cite error: The named reference MEE_SovCouncil_who was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  16. ^ Cite error: The named reference Const_Dec_En_unofficial was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  17. ^ Cite error: The named reference raisethevoices_4Aug2019_const_dec was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  18. ^ Cite error: The named reference deWaal_Hemeti was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  19. ^ Cite error: The named reference Dabanga_17July_signing was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  20. ^ Cite error: The named reference TMC_FFC_20190717_agreement was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  21. ^ Cite error: The named reference Dabanga_const_dec_signed190804 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  22. ^ Cite error: The named reference ThomReut_PortSudan_deal was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  23. ^ Olewe, Dickens (20 February 2023). "Mohamed 'Hemeti' Dagalo: Top Sudan military figure says coup was a mistake". BBC News. Retrieved 22 March 2023.
  24. ^ Nashed, Mat (21 March 2023). "As Sudan's rival forces vie for power, who pays the price?". Al Jazeera. Retrieved 22 March 2023.
  25. ^ "At least 25 killed, 183 injured in ongoing clashes across Sudan as paramilitary group claims control of presidential palace". CNN. 15 April 2023. Retrieved 15 April 2023.
  26. ^ Cite error: The named reference HRW_Hemetti_Darfur2014 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  27. ^ Cite error: The named reference reeves_moreblood was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  28. ^ Cite error: The named reference reeves_Hemetti_PR_campaign was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  29. ^ Cite error: The named reference DailyBeast_Hemeti_responsibility was invoked but never defined (see the help page).