Sudan’s capital of Khartoum was relatively quiet in the first few hours of a 24-hour ceasefire, the latest attempt to end intensive fighting between the Sudanese army and the Rapid Support Forces, RSF, paramilitary group. Reports said.
A truce mediated by the United States and Saudi Arabia went into effect at 6am (04:00 GMT) on Saturday in the hopes that a break in hostilities would allow for the secure delivery of much-needed humanitarian aid throughout the nation.
The ceasefire is also hoped to halt the fighting that has been raging since April 15 when a rivalry between army chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and RSF commander Mohamed Hamdan “Hemedti” Dagalo exploded into open warfare.
A string of previous ceasefires have fallen through with both sides accusing the other of violations.
The warring parties have agreed to abide by the ceasefire, Morgan said, but the shorter ceasefire when compared with others in the past is partly to test whether it will actually be honoured this time.
The US and Saudi Arabia said they shared “frustration” over the past violations, threatening to dismantle ceasefire talks if fighting continues.
Residents are waiting to see how the ceasefire will play out before they attempt to make a move, whether to stock up on basic commodities, or to try and leave Khartoum because of the continuing fighting, Morgan said.
Residents say they look forward to an end to the endless war.
