Temporary ceasefire reached in Sudan fighting, U.S. says
After more than a month of fighting, a temporary ceasefire has been reached in the deadly conflict between two warring factions in Sudan, the U.S. State Department announced Saturday.
The short-term ceasefire agreement, which was brokered by the U.S. and Saudi Arabia in Jeddah, was signed on Saturday and will take effect on Monday at 9:45 p.m. Central Africa Time, the State Department said. The agreement will last seven days and may be extended with an agreement by both parties, the State Department said.
The fighting between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) paramilitary group began in mid-April and has left more than 750 people dead, according to the latest numbers from the Armed Conflict Location and Event Data Project.
Under the terms of the temporary truce, the two sides have agreed to assist with delivering humanitarian aid, along with withdrawing forces from hospitals and other "essential public facilities."
They have also agreed to allow "goods to flow unimpeded from ports of entry to populations in need," the State Department said in a news release.
Several previous ceasefires have been violated over the past few weeks, but according to the State Department, this latest deal was signed by both parties and "will be supported by a U.S.- Saudi and international-supported ceasefire monitoring mechanism."
During the ceasefire, talks will continue in Jeddah in the hopes of reaching a permanent end to the fighting, the State Department said.
The fighting stems from a power struggle between two former allies, and now rivals: Gen. Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, leader of the Sudanese Armed Forces, and Gen. Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, leader of RSF.
The ensuing violence has caused significant destruction in Sudan's capital city of Khartoum and the neighboring city of Obdurman.
Last month, the U.S. military successfully evacuated U.S. diplomatic staff from Sudan and shuttered the U.S. Embassy in Khartoum. Hundreds of U.S. civilians have also been evacuated.
— Haley Ott contributed to this report.