Fighting rages on Sudan despite new truce
Khartoum, Apr 19 (EFE).- The ceasefire that was supposed to take effect at 6:00 pm Wednesday did not produce a halt to fighting between Sudan’s army and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) that has claimed at least 270 lives in the last five days.
A previous truce, adopted at the urging of the United States, collapsed Tuesday in a matter of hours.
The second ceasefire was announced by the RSF.
“We confirm our full commitment to a complete ceasefire, and we hope that the other party will abide by the armistice according to the announced time,” the group said on Twitter.
Shortly after 6:00 pm, the army said that it would respect the truce to “facilitate the humanitarian aspects” provided the RSF did likewise.
But hours after the official start of the ceasefire, EFE saw smoke from explosions and heard the sound of artillery as clashes continued in Khartoum, especially in the vicinity of the General Command of the Armed Forces, and the Presidential Palace.
The embassies of more than a dozen Western nations, including Spain, demanded Wednesday that both sides agree to an “immediate and unconditional” halt to hostilities, while the Arab League requested an armistice for Thursday’s observance of Eid al-Fitr, which marks the end of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan.
At least 270 people have been killed and more than 2,000 injured since the fighting broke out on Saturday, according to the World Health Organization.
Both the army and the paramilitaries have been accused of attacking civilian facilities, including medical centers and markets in the capital and other regions.
For their part, health sources warned of the serious humanitarian situation unfolding in the country.
The Central Committee of Sudanese doctors said that more than half the hospitals in Khartoum and the surrounding region were out of service.
And the Sudan office of the International Committee of the Red Cross said that hospitals were facing dangerous supply shortages and the loss of water and power. EFE az-cgs/lds/ks/dr
