The Sudanese Army General Command said the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) had been violating temporary ceasefire agreements. These included withdrawing from hospitals and residential buildings, said a Sudanese government official who wished to remain anonymous. Therefore, the talks in Jeddah in Saudi Arabia would not continue. The RSF, on the other hand, declared that the ceasefire would be observed despite repeated violations by the army.
In Sudan’s capital Khartoum, residents reported serious clashes between the warring factions. In the north and south of Khartoum, positions of the RSF militia, led by Mohamed Hamdan Daglo, were attacked by regime soldiers. An eyewitness spoke of “heavy artillery shelling” in northern Khartoum.
Clouds of smoke over southern Khartoum are evidence of new fighting
The Ministry of Health said that “nine health facilities” had been closed in Jazeera state south of Khartoum. The “presence of the RSF militias” threatens the medical staff and the supply, it said.
Ceasefire should last five days longer
Mediated by the United States and Saudi Arabia, the parties to the conflict agreed on Monday evening, shortly before the end of the previous ceasefire, to extend the ceasefire by five days. The extension should create space for further humanitarian aid and for talks on a longer-term ceasefire. Although the ceasefire has “not been fully observed” so far, the extension is important to enable humanitarian aid, the mediators said. Since the fighting began, several ceasefires that have been announced have not been observed.
Despite repeated promises from both sides, fighting continued this week around the capital Khartoum and in the western region near Darfur. “The army is ready to fight until victory,” said military ruler Abdel Fattah al-Burhan during a visit to the troops in the capital. The RSF militia, headed by Burhan’s former deputy Daglo, said it would “continue to exercise its right to self-defense”.
Burnt-out vehicles in front of the Central Bureau of Statistics in southern Khartoum
The fighting between the army and the RSF militia began in mid-April. More than 1,800 people have been killed since then, according to the non-governmental organization Acled. According to the United Nations, there are now 1.2 million displaced people in Sudan, and more than 425,000 people have fled to neighboring countries. According to the UN, 25 million people in Sudan are dependent on help and protection. Observers fear a destabilization of the entire region.
kle/wa (afp, rtr, dpa)
Source: DW
