Sudan Crisis | Fighting continues in Sudan for the fifth day, 270 people have died so far

PTI Photo Khartoum: Bomb blasts and heavy shelling rocked the Sudanese capital on Wednesday. Fighting between forces loyal to rival generals continues in Sudan for the fifth straight day. The Sudanese army and a rival paramilitary force had agreed to a 24-hour ceasefire from Tuesday evening, although it did not appear to be being followed. At the same time, according to a UN official, at least 270 people have lost their lives since the violence started in the country over the weekend. Eyewitnesses said that Sudanese people who have been confined in their homes for days due to the violence are now fleeing their homes in desperation with no sign of respite. Residents in several areas of Khartoum told The Associated Press that they saw scores of people, including women and children, carrying goods, some on foot and some in vehicles. “Khartoum has become a scary city,” said Atia Abdullah Atia, secretary of the doctors’ syndicate. According to the United Nations, at least 270 people have lost their lives in the country since the violence began over the weekend. Incessant shelling, artillery and airstrikes have rocked the Sudanese capital, Khartoum, and the nearby city of Omdurman. Also read Locals reported clashes near army headquarters and the international airport. “The fighting escalated in the morning after sporadic gunfire in the night,” said Tahani Abbas, a human rights advocate. Tahani lives near the army headquarters. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken spoke by phone with Sudan’s chief of the armed forces, General Abdel Fattah Burhan, and the head of the paramilitary Rapid Support Force, General Mohamed Hamdan. The two rivals had agreed to a 24-hour ceasefire from Tuesday evening, though it did not appear to be being followed. Months of tension between the country’s military and its former partner and now rival Rapid Support Force group (RSF) has escalated into conflict. The army, led by Abdul Fatah al-Burhan, in a statement ruled out talks with the RSF and called for its disbandment, calling it a “rebel militia”. Meanwhile, the paramilitary group ‘RSF’ described the chief of the armed forces as a “criminal”. Sudan’s military seized power in a coup in October 2021 and has since run the country through a sovereign council. There is a continuing tussle between the country’s army and powerful paramilitary forces over control of Sudan. (agency)