Fighting between the Sudanese army and a paramilitary group called the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) has continued despite the declared extension of a ceasefire, as a senior United Nations official arrived in the country for talks on providing relief to millions of trapped civilians.
The visit by top UN humanitarian official Martin Griffiths on Wednesday comes a day after neighbouring South Sudan announced that the warring sides had agreed “in principle” to a seven-day ceasefire.
Deadly violence broke out on April 15 between Sudan’s de facto leader Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, who commands the regular army, and his deputy-turned-rival Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, or Hemedti, who commands the RSF.
At least 550 people have been killed and 4,926 wounded, according to Wednesday’s latest health ministry figures, which are likely to be incomplete.
Multiple hospitals have been hit, humanitarian facilities looted and foreign aid groups forced to suspend most of their operations. Tens of thousands of Sudanese have fled to neighbouring countries in an exodus that has sparked warnings of a humanitarian “catastrophe” with implications for the entire region.
Reporting from Khartoum, Al Jazeera’s Hiba Morgan said intense fighting had continued throughout the morning, with witnesses reporting a powerful explosion near the presidential palace and clouds of smoke rising from the area in the capital.
“It looks as though the Sudanese army is trying to regain control over the presidential palace. The two sides have been fighting around its vicinity. Fighter jets have been launched, not just near the presidential palace, but also around other parts of Khartoum,” said Morgan.
Fierce clashes were also reported near the state broadcaster’s headquarters in the capital’s twin city of Omdurman, while explosions and anti-aircraft guns were also heard in the city of Bahri, north of Khartoum.
Meanwhile, Griffiths arrived in Port Sudan on the Red Sea coast on an urgent mission to find ways to bring relief to the millions of Sudanese who are unable to flee.
“We will still require agreements and arrangements to allow for movement of staff and supplies,” he told reporters via video link from Port Sudan.
Experts had earlier stressed the importance of economic aspects of Raiesi’s visit to Damascus, noting that increased economic cooperation would help confront the Western-imposed sanctions on both states.
The US has imposed rounds of crippling sanctions on Damascus. Parts of the restrictive measures have been imposed under the so-called Caesar Act, an American piece of legislation that purports to target the Assad government, despite sharp criticisms that the bans affect civilians.
The US also restored its sanctions against Tehran after unilaterally leaving the 2015 nuclear deal between Iran and world powers, officially called the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), three years after its conclusion. The US, under former president Donald Trump, launched what it called a maximum pressure campaign against Iran at the time, targeting the Iranian nation with the “toughest ever” sanctions.
