Khalid Omar Youssef urges stronger EU backing for peace in Sudan
April 23, 2026
At the European Parliament in Brussels, Khalid Omar Youssef, Sudan’s former Minister of Cabinet Affairs and rapporteur for the civil democratic alliance Somoud, held talks on Thursday, April 23, 2026 with several Members of the European Parliament about the war in Sudan. The meetings followed the Berlin Summit and focused on humanitarian aid, an immediate truce and European backing for a democratic transition in Sudan.
Meetings in Brussels
During the meetings, Khalid Omar Youssef spoke with members of the Foreign Affairs Committee and the EU-Africa Committee. The press text also named Carlo Fidanza, Paolo Inselvini, Pietro Vecchi and Carlo Ciccioli among the MEPs involved. According to the same text, he presented the main concerns of Sudanese civil society and called on the European Union to support the democratic transition and the peace process in Sudan.
Call for an immediate humanitarian truce
Youssef said the war in Sudan has produced what he described as a humanitarian catastrophe on a global scale. He also referred to the European Union’s role in organizing the Berlin Conference and to the pledges made by European countries to assist people in need. In that context, he argued for an immediate and unconditional humanitarian truce across the country and for closer coordination between all efforts aimed at a peaceful settlement.
Roadmap and political warning
According to Youssef, the Quartet roadmap offers the best route toward ending the war. He also said the Sudanese Islamist movement has played a destructive part by feeding the war and blocking peace efforts through influence inside the military establishment. He added that Sudanese civil society does not support that ideology and that Europe should, in his view, designate the group as a terrorist organization. He placed that argument in a broader political sequence, from years of Islamist rule to the 2019 uprising and the 2021 military coup.
Expectations after the talks
Sudanese civil society hopes these meetings will help produce a coordinated international position that can push Sudanese actors toward serious steps to end the war. The press text placed particular focus on women, children and minorities, who have faced famine and displacement since the conflict began. The European participants thanked Youssef and Sudanese civil society for their efforts, expressed solidarity with the population and said they were ready to help the Sudanese people move toward an end to the conflict and toward freedom, democracy, peace and dignity.
Sources:
Civil democratic alliance Somoud
European Parliament, Brussels
Andy Vermaut +32499357495