On Thursday, the United States confirmed that it remains ready to mediate between the warring parties in Sudan, provided it takes the issue of a truce “seriously” after the withdrawal of the Rapid Support Forces from talks in Jeddah.
A U.S. State Department spokesman said during Secretary of State Anthony Blinken’s visit to Oslo that the United States and Saudi Arabia are “ready to resume facilitating pending negotiations to find a negotiated solution to this conflict when forces clearly show their strength.” action that they are serious about their commitment to a ceasefire.”
The army fired heavy artillery at the Rapid Support Force in Khartoum on Wednesday after the force backed out of US-Saudi talks to allow the delivery of humanitarian aid to famine-threatening Sudan.
A US State Department spokesman said there were “serious ceasefire violations on both sides” in the conflict.
“These violations have forced us, as the facilitators of these negotiations, to seriously consider whether the parties are ready to take the necessary measures to fulfill the obligations they have assumed on behalf of the Sudanese people,” he added.
On Wednesday, White House national security spokesman John Kirby confirmed that the fighting in Sudan must end and aid must be brought into the country. He also continued: “The withdrawal of the Sudanese army from the truce negotiations is regrettable.”
Today, Thursday, the Forces for Freedom and Change in Sudan called on the army and the Rapid Support Forces to strictly adhere to the terms of the ceasefire agreement and stop all “violations”.
In a statement, the Forces for Freedom and Change called on both sides of the conflict to “immediately end the war and embark on a peaceful political path as the only option to resolve the problems of the national crisis.”
He also called on both sides to complete the negotiations in Jeddah without interruption or disruption, and in all seriousness to end the conflict and achieve a comprehensive and permanent ceasefire that would end the war.
A Sudanese diplomatic source previously said the army had suspended its participation in the talks in Jeddah without giving further details, Reuters reported.
At the same time, an official in the Sudanese government explained that such a position of the army arose due to the failure of the Operational Support Forces to fulfill the point related to their withdrawal from hospitals, AFP reports.
Significantly, negotiations between representatives of Sudan’s two main armed forces began about two weeks ago in Jeddah with Saudi-American sponsorship and led to a short truce, which was extended for 7 days on May 20, and then extended on the night of May 29, Monday , for another 5 days, in order to facilitate the passage of humanitarian aid and discuss a permanent ceasefire in the country.
The conflict between Al-Burhan and Hamidti erupted on April 15, after they were preparing to sign a framework agreement defining the features of the country’s new political transition, paving the way for general elections led by a civilian government, after they joined forces in October 2021. disbanded the previous government, which consisted of civilians.
Which turned the situation on its head and pushed the country into the furnace of hostilities, after thousands of Sudanese hoped to return to the democratic path.
Clashes between the two sides have left more than 700 people dead and thousands more injured, in addition to displacing an estimated 1.4 million people elsewhere in Sudan or neighboring countries, knowing the real death toll is likely to be much higher.
