Clashes renewed in the Sudanese capital, Khartoum, on Saturday, between the armed forces and the Rapid Support Forces. Fighting broke out in the vicinity of the presidential palace in Khartoum, with heavy weapons, amid columns of smoke rising north of the capital. It is noteworthy that, earlier on Saturday, the Sudanese army considered that the violent incidents in the country that have been going on for two weeks were an “attempt to hijack the country.”
In a statement he posted on Facebook, he added that what happened “was a failed attempt to seize power with rebel force and complete political cover, and in fact it was a project to hijack the Sudanese state with all its history in favor of a project of self-rule for one person,” referring to the commander of the Rapid Support Forces, Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo. Nicknamed Hamidati. He also accused parties from inside and outside the country, which he did not name, of plotting against the country. He stressed that there is no room for “false neutrality” in this ongoing battle, promising a near victory “in favor of the survival of the Sudanese state and its established institutions and the end of the project to hijack our country forever,” as he put it. The army, led by Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, also reaffirmed the armed forces’ commitment to civilian authority. He made it clear in a statement, issued yesterday, Saturday, that he would not be a lever for any entity, party or group to seize power. He also stressed that his forces are committed to the political process, which leads to the establishment of a civil authority. These statements came in an indirect response to the accusations repeatedly made by the commander of the Rapid Support Forces, Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, nicknamed Hemedti, and he repeated them the day before yesterday, about Al-Burhan’s attempt to seize power and obstruct the handover of power to a civilian government. Hemedti also stressed that it is his duty to form a viable civilian government, as he put it.
Prior to that, the Rapid Support Forces accused the army of attacking a number of troop concentration sites and residential neighborhoods in Khartoum with air and artillery, but it renewed its commitment to the humanitarian truce to open safe passages for citizens and facilitate the evacuation of foreign nationals. It is noteworthy that the Army and the Rapid Support Forces had previously announced their approval of a truce that began at midnight on Thursday, provided that it extends for 72 hours, but the two parties exchanged accusations of violating it. Since the outbreak of fighting between the two sides on April 15, 5 truces have been reached, but they have failed to hold and were punctuated by many violations. The battles have so far killed at least 500 people and wounded thousands, but the number of casualties may be much more as a result of the ongoing fighting.
Meanwhile, thousands of people have fled from Khartoum and its surrounding areas to other, safer states, amid scarcity of food and drinking water, power outages, and high fuel prices.
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