A so-called statement of principles was signed in Saudi Arabia on Thursday evening Friday after nearly a week of talks between the two sides, but no statement has yet been released by either side. acknowledging the agreement.
Since clashes suddenly erupted on April 15, neither side has been willing to make any concessions to end the fighting that has claimed hundreds of lives and threatens to plunge Sudan into an all-out civil war.
“We expected the agreement to calm the war, but we woke up to artillery fire and airstrikes,” said Mohamed Abdullah, 39, who lives in southern Khartoum. resounded in the nearby town of Bahri.
The agreement reached included commitments to allow safe passage for civilians, first aid and humanitarian relief, and to minimize harm to civilians and public facilities.
US officials said the signing would be followed by negotiations on the details of securing humanitarian access and a ceasefire of up to 10 days to facilitate those tasks.
One of the participants in the mediation effort said mediators pushed both sides to sign the Declaration of Principles for the Protection of Civilians in a bid to ease tensions in light of continuing disagreement over a ceasefire. wider fire.
Continuing offenses
Previous ceasefire declarations have witnessed repeated violations, leaving civilians amid a terrifying scene of chaos and shelling, with power and water cuts, food shortages and the collapse of the health system.
The declaration obliges both parties to vacate public and private property, including homes whose owners notably accuse the Rapid Support Forces of occupying them.
Rapid Support denies these accusations and blames members of the military and other armed groups.
The position of the civil forces
Khaled Omar Youssef, a civilian political leader, said in a tweet on Twitter: “We need this step to alleviate the suffering of our people, to turn it into a cessation of hostilities with clear mechanisms for implementation and follow up”.
And he went on to say, “Then the rest of the steps will follow for our country to write a peaceful way out of this disaster that has befallen it.”
The US State Department official said civilian forces were expected to participate in the talks later.
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