The US Embassy in Khartoum announced today (Friday) that Saudi Arabia and the United States of America note an improvement in respect for the short-term ceasefire agreement and humanitarian arrangements in Sudan, which was reached last (Saturday) with Saudi-American mediation during the talks in the city of Jeddah, after battles. It took place 5 weeks ago between the army forces and the Rapid Support Forces.
And it stated in a statement, that despite the use of military aircraft and gunfire in the capital, Khartoum, yesterday and before, the situation has improved since May 24, when the ceasefire monitoring mechanism revealed major violations of the agreement, which included the massive use of artillery, military aircraft and drones, as well as On the continuation of the fighting in the heart of the industrial area of Khartoum, and the clashes in Zalingei, and Darfur.
The embassy revealed that the mediators, after these previous violations, communicated with both sides of the conflict, stressing that the renewed fighting has endangered civilians and obstructed the delivery of humanitarian aid, which undermined the main objectives of the ceasefire. They warned the conflicting parties against committing more violations, and appealed to them to improve and respect the ceasefire.
The United Nations Special Envoy to the Horn of Africa, Hanna Tetteh, expressed her concern about the developments in Sudan, and wrote on her Twitter account yesterday (Thursday), “The developments in Sudan are worrying. A ceasefire agreement has been signed … and yet the fighting continues.” She considered that this is unacceptable and must stop, people must be able to live their lives in peace.
For his part, US State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said yesterday that we are still witnessing violations of the ceasefire, especially in Khartoum and Darfur. He added: We are putting pressure on both sides regarding these violations, stressing that the United States reserves the right to impose sanctions when necessary, but he did not want to talk about a timetable or about the individuals who might be targeted by these sanctions.
In turn, the Sudanese army renewed the Sudanese Armed Forces’ commitment to the text of the Jeddah ceasefire agreement.
He said in a statement that the agreement is limited to the military and technical aspects of the temporary ceasefire arrangements, in addition to arrangements for the protection of civilians and hospitals, and does not address political issues.
While the political advisor to the commander of the Rapid Support Forces, Youssef Ezzat, described the cease-fire agreement in Jeddah as a good and positive step, and said that the Rapid Support Forces are committed to the armistice and the cease-fire.
