Violent clashes between the Sudanese Armed Forces, led by Abdel Fattah Al-Burhan, and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), led by Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo “Hamidti”, entered their third day on Monday.
The two sides continue to announce achieving gains on the ground, while Arab and international parties call for an immediate cease-fire and dialogue.
In a statement on Sunday evening, the Sudanese army said that the situation is very stable amid “limited” clashes in the vicinity of the army command in the capital, Khartoum. The army affirmed adherence to all its comparisons, and we are very close to the decisive moment.
“We have moved to the final stage of the operation plan, which is chasing down the enemy, whose elements are currently fleeing everywhere. Unfortunately, the rebels were keen to engage near populated areas, and we know that they did not care about the safety of the population,” read the statement.
Meanwhile, the commander of the Rapid Support Forces, Hemedti, said that the international community must take action now and intervene against “Al-Burhan’s crimes”.
“The war we are fighting now is a price for democracy and our actions are a response to the siege and attack of our forces,” the RSF commander added in a post on his official Facebook page. “Al-Burhan’s army is waging a brutal campaign against innocent civilians and bombing them with MiG fighters.”
Hemedti also said: “We will continue to pursue Al-Burhan and bring him to justice,” adding, “We are taking all measures to ensure the security and safety of the people, and we will do everything to protect democracy.”
“We are fighting against radical Islamists who hope to keep Sudan isolated and in the dark, and far removed from democracy. We will continue to pursue Al-Burhan and bring him to justice,” Hemedti said, calling on “the international community to take action and intervene against the crimes of Sudanese General Abdel Fattah Al-Burhan, a radical Islamist who is bombing civilians from the air.”
Also on Monday, the Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Sudan and Head of the United Nations Integrated Transition Assistance Mission in Sudan (UNITAMS), Volker Perthes, expressed his disappointment at the failure of the army and the RSF to stop the fighting for humanitarian purposes.
According to a statement issued by the UN mission, Perthes “expressed his deep disappointment that the cessation of hostilities for humanitarian purposes, which the Sudanese Armed Forces and the Rapid Support Forces pledged, was only partially fulfilled on Sunday. The clashes also intensified on Monday morning.”
Perthes urged all parties involved in the conflict to respect their international obligations, including ensuring the protection of all civilians, and the cessation of hostilities.
Moreover, the Sudan Doctors Syndicate announced that the death toll from the clashes has risen, announcing in a statement early on Monday, that the death toll among civilians has reached 97, while the number of injured has reached 365.
Several regional and international parties called on both parties to stop the violence. After a meeting on the sidelines of the Group of Seven summit in Japan, on Monday, the US and British foreign secretaries of state, called for an “immediate cessation” of violence in Sudan.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said after the meeting that there is agreement on the need for an immediate ceasefire and a return to talks, adding that “there is a deep common concern about the fighting and the threat it poses to civilians and to Sudan, which it may affect the entire region.”
