Clashes continue in Khartoum, citizens complain of money shortage

Khartoum, May 6 (EFE).- Clashes between the Sudanese Army and the paramilitary group Rapid Support Forces (FSR) continued Saturday, despite a ceasefire and the announcement of the start of peace talks in Saudi Arabia, while citizens in the capital complain about the closure of banks and increase in prices.

Airstrikes by the army were concentrated in the east of the Nile and south of Um Durman, neighboring Khartoum, where the FSR are positioned, in an attempt to get them out of their positions, eyewitnesses told EFE.

They added that during the morning, intermittent gunfire with heavy weapons and bombings were heard in the vicinity of the Presidential Palace, one of the main areas of the conflict that began on Apr.15.

Despite these clashes, a tense calm prevails in other large areas of the capital and life has begun to have a semblance of normality in certain neighborhoods of the capital.

Several residents told EFE about the continued closure of banks and ATMs, as well as the lack of cash to buy goods, while banking applications showed errors.

Transport prices also increased due to fuel shortages following the closure of most gas stations for a third week.

Electricity, water and telecommunications infrastructure, as well as businesses and homes, have been damaged, looted or destroyed in the hostilities.

In some areas, the price of basic goods – such as bottled water, basic foodstuff and fuel for cooking and cars – has increased by 40-60 percent, according to the UN.

The first negotiations between the two sides in the conflict were expected to begin in the coastal city of Jeddah in Saudi Arabia, with the aim of paving the way for a permanent ceasefire in the African country.

At least 551 people have died and nearly 5,000 have been wounded in the conflict in Sudan, mired in a humanitarian catastrophe, according to the UN. EFE

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