Sudan expects new 24-hour truce as hostilities near two months

An express truce “to break the cycle of violence” after a series of failed armistices. The conflict in Sudan is about to complete its second month without showing signs of a near end and with the civilian population plunged into a serious humanitarian crisis. For this reason, this Friday, thanks to the mediation of Saudi Arabia and the United States, the Sudanese Army and the paramilitaries of the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) agreed to a 24-hour cessation of hostilities throughout the country.

“We call on both sides to adhere to the commitment made today for a 24-hour ceasefire, which would allow the Sudanese to receive critical humanitarian assistance,” the US State Department’s Bureau of African Affairs said, noting that they are giving the warring parties the opportunity to end a “meaningless” war.

Since previous ceasefires in Sudan have been systematically violated by both sides, Saudi Arabia warned that if the pact between army chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and paramilitary commander Mohamed Hamdan Hemedti were not respected, they would consider suspending efforts to peace.

#Statement | The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the United States of America announce that representatives of the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) agreed to a 24-hour countrywide ceasefire beginning on June 10 at 6:00 a.m. Khartoum time. pic.twitter.com/WChGntroxH

— Foreign Ministry ?? (@KSAmofaEN) June 9, 2023

The military said in a statement that they “accepted the commitment to the ceasefire” and both parties agreed to avoid “prohibited movements, attacks, the use of aircraft or drones, aerial bombardments, artillery attacks, reinforcement of positions and will refrain from seeking advantages military during the ceasefire”, according to the Riyadh-Washington statement.

End a “senseless war”

For his part, an adviser to the paramilitaries in exile, stated in an interview with the Qatari media outlet Al Jazeera that they are waiting for the initiative of foreign mediators to get out of the crisis.

“We insist on having observers on the ground, on the initiative of the US and Saudi Arabia, because all these accusations can be cleared up when we have these observers. The problem here is not the accusations of each other. The question is to focus on how stop the war how [implementar] the ceasefire and how to abide by the initiative,” he stressed.

This new attempt to cease the attacks will take effect on Saturday at 6 am local time, and comes after a turbulent week. The intensification of the bombardments in Khartoum, the capital and the hottest area of ​​the fighting, has limited the movement of the civilian population, confined to their homes by shrapnel and unable to access the scarce humanitarian aid that is arriving in the country.

“There are bullets from all directions. We are afraid,” said a young resident of the capital. Like her, many inhabitants are distrustful of the pact and call for a total and lasting cessation.

A humanitarian crisis that worsens every day

At the end of last month, the talks – which were taking place in the Saudi city of Jeddah – to reach a negotiation and restore normalcy in the country were interrupted and the mediators are now seeking to create the necessary conditions of trust to resume them. To do this, they would have to respect the 24-hour truce without exceptions and allow civilians to receive humanitarian assistance, which, as the relief organizations denounced, have been victims of looting and obstacles, preventing their delivery.

Continued violations of previous ceasefires have exacerbated the humanitarian crisis in Sudan. The United Nations estimates that some 25 million people, in a country of just over 50 million inhabitants, would need humanitarian assistance. In just under two months, more than 1,800 people have been killed, according to the Armed Conflict Location and Event Data Project.

In addition, some 1.5 million people have been forced to leave their homes, displaced both within Sudanese territory and to neighboring countries. Most lack the necessary conditions and food supplies to survive for a long period of time, if the war continues to drag on.

“The fighting in Khartoum has intensified significantly. In the last 72 hours, the Bashair University Hospital, where MSF works, has received more than 150 traumatized patients with war wounds and has performed 26 major surgeries,” denounced on Twitter the NGO Doctors Without Borders, one of the few organizations still on the ground providing medical assistance.

The Sudanese medical system is on the verge of collapse, especially in and around the capital, and the shortage of medicines and medical personnel is seriously affecting the health of Sudanese, who face great risks trying to reach hospitals. While previous truces have allowed for limited aid deliveries, aid agencies say they are being hampered by “bureaucratic controls, fighting and looting.”

“Our medical supplies are mainly donated by humanitarian organizations and groups. Some organizations provide supplies while others provide transportation support. But to be honest, these supplies are far from enough to sustain us for a week,” Ahmed Zait told Reuters. , civil servant at a small hospital in AlNau.

This Friday, the United Nations also denounced that since the beginning of the conflict women have been suffering sexual violence, which constitutes a war crime. But there were also cases of forced disappearances and arbitrary detentions.

“Since the fighting began, our Office has received credible reports of 12 incidents of conflict-related sexual violence, against at least 37 women, although the number could be higher. In at least three incidents, the victims were girls. In one case, between 18 and 20 women were reportedly raped,” the UN Human Rights Agency said.

With AP, Reuters and local media