The UN calls for a three-day ceasefire in Sudan after the failure of the second truce

First modification: 04/20/2023 – 19:47

This April 20 marks the sixth day of fighting between the Army and the paramilitaries of the Rapid Attention Forces (RSF) in Sudan. The second attempt to reach a truce, which would allow the evacuation of thousands of civilians, has again failed in the midst of chaos and, for the moment, the dialogue between the two parties seems broken.

Given the situation, the UN Secretary General, António Guterres, called for an immediate truce of at least three days to allow civilians trapped in conflict zones “to escape and seek medical treatment, food and other essential supplies”, a pact that it would coincide with the end of Ramadan and would serve as a first step towards a permanent ceasefire.

“The cessation of hostilities must be followed by a serious dialogue, which allows for a successful transition, starting with the appointment of a civilian government,” Guterres told reporters after a meeting with the African Union (AU) and other regional organizations.

The organization’s secretary general also maintained that during the meeting all the African powers present “condemned the fighting” by consensus and called for an end to the violence as an “immediate priority.” However, dialogue doesn’t seem like an immediate option.

And it is that, after days of attempted negotiations, this Thursday the government of General Abdelfatah al-Burhan has assured that it does not intend to negotiate with the rebels. According to government sources, the fighting has two possible outcomes: the elimination of the RSF or its victory, but not negotiation.

“The entry into force of the truce for humanitarian reasons has nothing to do with the resounding refusal to enter into negotiations with the rebels,” the Sudanese Armed Forces said in a statement.

Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo or ‘Hemedti’, leader of the RSF, assured on Wednesday before the television channel ‘Al Jazeera’ that it was open to a “short” ceasefire.

“We are talking about a humanitarian truce, we are talking about safe steps; we are not talking about sitting down with a criminal,” Hemedti said, referring to Al-Burhan.

But the paramilitary has also changed his rhetoric: after assuring that he would negotiate with the Executive on April 20, he said that he is not willing to negotiate either. In recent days he has branded Al-Barhane a “radical Islamist” and vowed to defeat him and bring him to justice, even threatening to kill him.

According to the WHO, more than 330 civilians have already been killed and another 3,200 injured after six days of crossfire. The World Food Program (WFP) has already warned that the conflict could starve millions of people in Sudan, where the humanitarian situation is already critical with a third of the population at risk of food.

The temporary suspension of food and financial assistance operations by the WFP to the African country, after the murder of three of its workers in Darfur last Sunday, will prevent its aid from reaching the more than 7.6 million people who It was scheduled for 2023.

In this context, between 10,000 and 20,000 Sudanese have crossed into Chad and thousands more have left Khartoum – the most affected by the fighting. However, thousands of citizens and foreigners remain trapped in the capital, where there are increasing food shortages and water and electricity cuts.

“There is no food, the supermarkets are empty. We are not safe here so people are leaving,” Abdelmalek, a Khartoum resident, told Reuters.

“Hospitals need urgent help. Most of Khartoum’s hospitals are no longer functioning and several have been shelled and shot at. Others have run out of fuel and cannot function. Those that remain open are overcrowded with wounded and are running out of medicine no supplies. They don’t even have enough bandages,” said Elsadig Elnour, director of the Islamic Relief humanitarian organization in Sudan.

On the other hand, some countries such as the United States or Germany continue to be concerned about their citizens in Sudanese territory. This Thursday, the Pentagon assured that it is deploying forces to prepare the possible evacuation of US embassy personnel and working on the departure of civilians.

“We are deploying additional capabilities near the region for contingency purposes related to security and the possible facilitation of the departure of US embassy personnel from Sudan,” the Pentagon said in a statement.

Now, experts say that a short-term truce is unlikely, and that neighboring nations and humanitarian agencies must prepare to help alleviate the consequences of the conflict as Hemedti and Al-Burhane accuse each other of wanting to boycott the country’s democratic transition. .

With EFE, Reuters and local media