Warring parties in Sudan agreed to a seven-day ceasefire following talks in the Saudi Arabian city of Jeddah, according to a statement from Washington and Riyadh. Meanwhile, fighting has entered its sixth week, killing hundreds and displacing more than a million people.
The ceasefire was signed late on Saturday, May 20.
The United States and Saudi Arabia, sponsors of the talks, said in a joint statement that the agreement would come into force in 48 hours, at 9:45pm local time (19:45GMT) on Monday 22nd.
The previous ceasefire agreement has been repeatedly broken. However, the agreement would be enforced by a US-Saudi-backed and international-backed monitoring mechanism, the statement said, without giving details.
The agreement also calls for the distribution of humanitarian aid, the restoration of essential services and the withdrawal of troops from hospitals and essential public facilities.
US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken said, “Now is the time to silence the guns and allow unhindered humanitarian access. I am begging both sides to uphold this agreement, the eyes of the world are on it.”
Fighting between the Sudanese army and the paramilitary Rapid Aid Forces has plunged the country into chaos. Stockpiles of food, cash and essentials quickly dwindled, and mass looting hit banks, embassies, aid depots and even churches.
Will this truce last?
Al Jazeera’s Sheba Morgan reported from the capital’s sister city, Omdurman, that the agreement would put a pause on the conflict, allowing the warring parties to stick to their current positions.
“The rapid support force will control the presidential palace and the army will control its headquarters, which is the General Command of the Armed Forces. As for the airport, the former has more control over the facilities there, so they will maintain their control,” she noted.
But the people of Sudan, who are desperate for humanitarian aid, are very skeptical of the agreement, says Morgan.
“People are saying they are not sure if this truce will last. They have seen how previous truces work out. For humanitarian aid, then they will know if there really is a truce.”
The ceasefire came as residents of Omdurman and North Khartoum, two cities across the Nile from Khartoum, reported heavy airstrikes.
Witnesses said some of the attacks took place near the state broadcaster in Omdurman.
“This morning we came under heavy fire and the whole house was shaking,” Sana Hassan, 33, who lives in the al-Salha neighborhood of Omdurman, told Reuters by telephone.
“It’s terrifying, everyone is lying under their own beds. It’s a nightmare what’s happening,” he said.
Rapid Support Forces penetrated deep into populated areas, drawing almost constant airstrikes from regular armed forces.
Witnesses in Khartoum said the situation was relatively calm, although gunfire could occasionally be heard.
fight in a hurry
At least 705 people have been killed and at least 5,287 injured in the conflict, which began on April 15, according to the World Health Organization. Around 1.1 million people were internally displaced and in neighboring countries.
Land fighting has erupted again in Nyala and Zalenjei in the Darfur region in recent days.
In statements late on Friday, both sides blamed each other for sparking the fighting in Nyala, one of the country’s largest cities. The region has been relatively quiet for weeks thanks to a local ceasefire.
A local activist told Reuters that there were sporadic gun battles on Saturday morning near the city’s main market, near the headquarters of the armed forces. According to them, almost 30 people were killed in the fighting during the previous two days.
After decades of conflict-ridden rule by former President Omar al-Bashir, who installed himself as the country’s leader after a coup in 1989, the controversial plan to incorporate the Rapid Support Forces into the army began under an agreement that supported internationally, following the War. in Khartoum.
