Sudan: Death toll rises as fighting continues
Gunfire and explosions could be heard in Khartoum on Monday as fighting continues between the army and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF). Doctors said the death toll has continued to climb. At least 97 civilians have been killed in Sudan as the death toll rises from fighting between the army and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) paramilitary.
The Sudan Doctors' Syndicate announced the updated death toll on Monday morning, but said it could not include all casualties as many people are unable to reach hospitals amid the clashes. A separate pro-democracy organisation, the Central Committee of Sudan Doctors, said at least 942 civilians and soldiers had been wounded.
AFP news agency reported that gunfire and loud explosions continued to be heard in the streets of the capital, Khartoum, on Monday after a three-hour pause in hostilities on Sunday night.
Blinken expresses 'deep concern' over violence
On Monday, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said that there is a "shared deep concern" among allies toward the situation in Sudan. "And also a strongly held view, again, across all of our partners on the need for an immediate ceasefire and return to talks – talks that were very promising in putting Sudan on the path to a full transition to civilian-led government," he added
Speaking on the sidelines of the G7 foreign ministers' meeting in Japan, Blinken said the people of Sudan want democracy and for the military to "return to the barracks".
This sentiment was echoed by British Foreign Secretary James Cleverly who said "ultimately, the immediate future lies in the hands of the generals who are engaged in this fight, and we call upon them to put peace first, to bring an end to the fighting, to get back to negotiations".
It comes after the African Union and United Nations also called for an immediate cease-fire without conditions over the weekend.
What's behind the fighting in Sudan?
Fighting erupted on Saturday as the result of an ongoing power struggle between Sudan's army chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and his deputy Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo – more commonly known as Hemeti – who leads the RSF paramilitary.
The two leaders disagreed over the planned integration of the 100,000-strong RSF into Sudan's regular army, which was a key condition for the deal they struck in the wake of the 2021 military coup they orchestrated together. Analysts believe Hemeti opposes such a move.
Sudan's political situation has been tense since mass protests led to the ousting of strongman Omar al-Bashir in 2019. Burhan headed the Transitional Military Council that was supposed to usher in civilian elections. These plans were frozen when he and Hemeti staged the 2021 coup.
Earlier this month, Sudanese authorities indefinitely postponed a new agreement to hand over control to a civilian government.
"There's still a lot of support throughout the country for democratic transition," said Kholood Khair, director of the Sudan-based Confluence Advisory, on Sunday. "We have to remember that this power struggle between the generals is by no means indicative of the broader politics that are taking place in Sudan." (AFP, Reuters)