Sudan: Cease-fire takes effect ahead of donor summit
June 18, 2023
Sudan's military and the rival Rapid Support Forces (RSF) paramilitary group began a 72-hour cease-fire on Sunday aimed at calming more than two months of conflict.
Residents said the truce, brokered by the United States and Saudi Arabia, kicked off at 6 a.m. local time (0400 GMT) and brought a lull in clashes in the capital, Khartoum, following battles and airstrikes overnight.
What has been agreed?
"The parties agreed that during the cease-fire they will refrain from prohibited movements, attacks, use of military aircraft or drones, artillery strikes, reinforcement of positions and resupply of forces, and will refrain from seeking military advantage," the US Embassy for Sudan said.
"They also agreed to allow the unimpeded movement and delivery of humanitarian assistance throughout the country," a statement from the embassy said.
Witnesses said airstrikes had intensified in the capital in the days preceding the latest truce. On Saturday, warplanes struck residential districts of Khartoum, killing 17 civilians, including five children, according to a citizens' support committee.
By Sunday morning, resident Salaheldin Ahmed told Reuters news agency that the fighting had stopped.
"The situation in Khartoum is calm, especially because last night there were airstrikes and it was terrifying," Ahmed said, expressing hope that the truce could be the "beginning of the end" of the war.
"We are tired," he said. "Enough of war, death and looting."
Khartoum had become a war zone
War broke out in Sudan in mid-April following a long-simmering power struggle between de facto President Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and Vice President Mohammed Hamdan Daglo.
The two leaders failed to agree on a plan for a transition to elections under a civilian government four years after long-ruling autocrat Omar al-Bashir was overthrown during a popular uprising.
The conflict has turned the capital into a war zone plagued by looting, led to outbursts of fighting in other regions, and triggered a sharp escalation of violence in Darfur in western Sudan.
More than 3,000 people have been killed and over 6,000 others wounded, according to Health Minister Haitham Mohammed Ibrahim.
The conflict has wrecked the country's infrastructure, leaving about 60% of health facilities across the country nonfunctional.
Large amounts of medical supplies were either looted or destroyed, leaving stocks low, according to the World Health Organization.
There have been numerous temporary cease-fires since then, but these have been repeatedly broken.
Donors asked to pledge $3 billion
The latest truce has begun a day before an international donor conference to alleviate the suffering of the civilian population and Sudanese refugees in neighboring countries.
On Monday, Germany, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Egypt and the United Nations will host the summit in Geneva that aims to attract pledges of funding for humanitarian relief in Sudan.
The UN says more than half the population of 49 million now needs humanitarian assistance within Sudan, requiring some $3 billion (€2.7 billion) in funding until the end of the year.
It has also appealed for nearly $500 million for the refugee crisis caused by the conflict.
According to UN figures, more than 2.2 million people have been displaced by the fighting, including more than 500,000 who have fled to neighboring countries.
mm/sms (AFP, AP, dpa, Reuters)