Europe News Desk!! US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has said that the warring parties in Sudan have agreed on a 72-hour ceasefire. Blinken said on Monday that an agreement had been reached between the army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Force (RSF) after 48 hours of talks, the BBC reported. The ceasefire began at midnight (local time) on Monday. It is at least the third ceasefire declared since the violence broke out this month. The last two ceasefires have failed. Both sides have independently announced joining the ceasefire. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has warned that the military conflict in Sudan could spread to the entire region and beyond. The violence must stop, he warned. It is a catastrophe within Sudan that can spread to the whole region.
Sudan’s health ministry said more than 400 people have been killed and nearly 4,000 injured in the deadly clashes. Violent clashes broke out in the capital city Khartoum and elsewhere on 15 April between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the paramilitary RSF. The redeployment of RSF members across the country was seen by the army as a threat. Sudan is facing a political crisis after Sudanese army commander Abdel Fattah al-Burhan declared a state of emergency on October 25, 2021, and dissolved the government along with the Sovereign Council. On December 5, 2022, Sudan’s military and civilian leaders signed a political framework agreement to end the political impasse and establish a two-year transitional civilian authority, but the two sides have so far failed to finalize the agreement Are. They have agreed on most issues, with the exception of those related to security and military forces reforms, under which the RSF and other armed groups will be integrated into the Sudanese military.
–IANS
World News Desk!!
cbt