[ad_1]
World leaders have called on Sudan’s warring factions to adhere to the Eid al-Fitr ceasefire that begins on Friday.
Sudan’s paramilitary group, the RSF (Rapid Support Forces), has announced that it will soon begin a ceasefire despite heavy fighting with the army in the capital, Khartoum.
In a statement, RSF said it would adhere to the 72-hour ceasefire. It comes into effect at 6:00 am (04:00 GMT) on Friday, marking the beginning of the Islamic holiday of Eid al-Fitr.
“The armistice coincides with the blessed Eid al-Fitr and opens a humanitarian corridor to evacuate civilians and give families the chance to greet them,” the statement said.
Khartoum was rocked by heavy shelling early on Friday, with the RSF accusing the army of launching a “mopping up attack” on the capital.
An Al Jazeera correspondent in the north of the city reported a shootout between the RSF and the military minutes before the militia ceasefire began.
There was no word from the military on whether the ceasefire would be honored.
A series of failed ceasefires has followed since a violent power struggle broke out last weekend between the army led by General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and the RSF led by General Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo. The two had previously allied themselves as leaders of Sudan’s military government.
UN Secretary-General António Guterres is one of the prominent international leaders who recently called on warring factions to comply with the three-day truce over Eid and to allow civilians to reach them safely. I called.
At least 350 people have died in the fighting so far.
Thousands of civilians have fled Khartoum and large numbers have crossed to Chad to escape fighting in the western regions of Darfur.
The UN refugee agency told Al Jazeera that the “majority” of those who crossed into Chad were women and children.
“They seem to have fled overnight with nothing,” said UNHCR global spokesperson Kathryn Mahoney, adding that even before the military and RSF began fighting, Sudan already had a million people. With more than 100,000 refugees, Sudan’s violence presents a “very serious displacement crisis”, he said.
[ad_2]
Source link
