Khartoum woke up this Thursday under explosions and aerial bombardments, on the third and last day of the truce agreed by the Army and the Rapid Support Forces paramilitary group, which have been facing each other in the capital and other regions of Sudan for eleven days.
In turn, the United States and African nations are seeking an extension of the truce with the parties to allow for negotiations and, in the meantime, evacuate many foreign nationals still in the country.
The ceasefire, which was due to expire at midnight, has made it possible to mitigate the fighting for three days, although it has not stopped it completely nor has it improved the humanitarian situation in the African country, which continues to feel critical.
The paramilitary forces have accused the Army of attacking their troops in Kafouri "with fighters and artillery" today, "despite the humanitarian truce" mediated by the United States and have caused "large losses," according to the document.
These attacks come amid mutual accusations by the Sudanese army and the FAR of taking advantage of the truce to reinforce their troops in Khartoum and prepare for a new round of fighting.
So far, at least 512 people have been killed and more than 4,000 injured in the fighting, which has depleted the Sudanese health system and forced the displacement of tens of thousands of people.
The more than a thousand European citizens evacuated today are joined by Chinese workers stationed in Sudan, who the Beijing government has ordered to evacuate by sending Navy ships because it considers that in Sudan "security conditions have continued to deteriorate."
The United States also evacuated its embassy staff by air over the weekend, but it has been the subject of controversy because it has not offered any options for the estimated 16,000 American civilians believed to be in Sudan at the moment. Despite many holding dual nationality and not expressing a desire to leave, US assistance has been largely limited to help by phone and online.
In a security alert on Tuesday, the State Department indicated that “due to the uncertain security situation in Khartoum and the closure of the airport, it is currently unsafe to conduct a coordinated evacuation by the US government from private US citizens. Instead, it did provide details about border crossings and the necessary requirements at each location.
