Violence reached new levels in Sudan on Thursday, with destruction and looting in Darfur and heavy shelling in Khartoum, the thirteenth day of a war between the army and paramilitaries that has left hundreds, if not thousands, dead.

Hours before the end of the three-day ceasefire, which was only partially observed, at midnight (01:00 Greek time), the army and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) announced that they had approved an extension for another 72 hours. under the “initiative of Saudi Arabia and the United States.”

In a joint statement released in Washington, the members of the Sudan Quartet (Saudi Arabia, UAE, UK and US), as well as the African Union and the UN, stressed that they “welcome” the extension of the ceasefire, calling for its “full implementation” and “ensuring unfettered humanitarian access”.

This “ceasefire”, which took effect on Tuesday, allowed thousands of foreigners and Sudanese to flee in haste, but did not stop the continued bombardment of Khartoum by warplanes and artillery pieces.

Previous attempts to call a ceasefire between the two sides that started the war on April 15 have failed.

“I hear intense shelling near my house,” a Khartoum resident said on Thursday.

Fighting since the middle of the month between the army of General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and the dreaded DTY of General Mohamed Hamdan Daghlo, or “Hameti”, has resulted in the death of at least 500 people and the injury of thousands more, according to – probably underestimated – figures. Ministry of Health of Sudan.

Dashing hopes of the country’s transition to democracy, the two generals forced civilians out of the transitional government along with them in a coup in 2021, before going to war this month after they failed to agree on terms for integrating the paramilitaries into the regular army.

In Darfur, an isolated region that is currently inaccessible, violence has escalated, especially in Jenaina, the capital of Western Darfur.

“Hospitals, medical facilities and public buildings have been badly damaged and looting is taking place on every street corner,” said a Jenaina resident.

“Excluded”

“We are locked in our homes, we are too afraid to go out because we do not know the extent of the destruction,” he added.

Little information comes from this particular region, which neighbors Chad and was the scene of a bloody war in the 2000s. But the doctors of the democratic movement said that at least one of their colleagues had already been killed.

A few days ago, the UN condemned “attacks against civilians”, “looting and burning houses” and the “distribution of weapons” among civilians.

The clashes are making life even more precarious in one of the nation’s poorest states, where 50,000 “severely malnourished” children have lost food aid after the UN suspended operations following the killing of five workers.

“Violence, the closure of numerous hospitals and health centers, limited access to drinking water, food shortages and forced population displacement” are “the biggest health risk in Sudan,” warns the World Health Organization (WHO).

The fighting is causing a massive exodus from a country of 45 million people, one of the poorest on the planet.

Tens of thousands of people arrived in neighboring countries: Chad in the west, Ethiopia in the east, South Sudan and the Central African Republic in the south, Egypt in the north.

African Union Commission Chairman Moussa Faki Maamat called on neighboring countries and the international community to help people fleeing the fighting, and for warring parties to “agreed immediately to a ceasefire to facilitate the distribution of humanitarian aid to the Sudanese who need it.”

“Extremely disturbing”

In recent days, many governments have organized a hasty evacuation of their citizens from Sudan by ship and aircraft. More than 200 Iraqis arrived in Baghdad yesterday on two planes sent by the government.

Another Saudi vessel arrived in Jeddah port (west) in the evening, bringing the number of people taken out by the kingdom to 2,744. At the same time, Canada announced that it had begun the expulsion of 118 of its citizens and citizens of other states.

Those who remain in war zones face shortages of food, water, electricity, phone lines and the internet.

The UN temporary humanitarian coordinator in Sudan, Abu Dieng, said he was “extremely concerned about the food supply” and called for “collective action”.

According to the doctors’ union, fourteen hospitals were bombed and another 19 had to be evacuated due to fire, lack of equipment or personnel, or being taken over by warring parties.

Source: RES-IPE