G7 foreign ministers on Tuesday (April 18) called for an “immediate” end to fighting in Sudan. Since Saturday, clashes between the regular army of General Abdel Fattah Al-Bourhane and the paramilitary forces of his former ally, General Mohamed Hamdane Daglo, known as “Hemetti”, have already left nearly 200 dead and at least 1,800 injured. , according to the UN.
“We urge all parties to immediately end the violence, de-escalate tensions and restore civilian rule in Sudan,” foreign ministers of major industrialized countries said after meeting in Japan .
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, for his part, spoke separately on Tuesday with the two rival generals fighting for power in Sudan and stressed “the urgency of achieving a ceasefire”, according to his spokesperson, Vedant Patel.
A ceasefire would “provide humanitarian assistance to those affected by the fighting, reunite Sudanese families [dispersed by the fighting] and ensure the safety of members of the international community in Khartoum”, according to the authorities. comments by Mr. Blinken reported by Mr. Patel in a statement.
On Monday, a US diplomatic convoy to Sudan came under fire, but no one was injured. Antony Blinken called it an “irresponsible” act. That same day, the European Union ambassador to the country was attacked at his home.
“The Sudanese want the military back in the barracks. They want democracy. They want a government run by civilians. Sudan must find this way, “insisted from Japan the head of American diplomacy.
In Khartoum, two hospitals evacuated
In the sky of Khartoum, the planes of the army of General Al-Bourhane try to overcome the intense fire of the armored paramilitaries of the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), commanded by General Hemetti. It was impossible on Monday to know which force controls what.
The FSR announced that they had taken the airport and entered the presidential palace, which the army denied. The army ensures, for its part, to hold the HQ of its staff, one of the main power complexes in Khartoum. As for state television, after two days of fighting in its vicinity, it now broadcasts images and press releases from the army, which claims to have regained ground in many places.
At least two hospitals in Khartoum have been evacuated “as rockets and bullets riddled their walls”, said doctors who say they have no more blood bags or equipment to treat the wounded.
Médecins sans Frontières (MSF) says it received 136 wounded on Monday in its last functional hospital in North Darfur. “The majority are civilians who were shot at, many of them children,” the NGO reports. “Eleven died” on Saturday and Sunday due to lack of equipment and personnel.
In the capital, since the outbreak of fighting on Saturday, residents have barricaded themselves in their homes. Above them, columns of thick black smoke rise, the smell of gunpowder pricks the nostrils and everyone wonders when the electricity and running water will return.
Egypt convenes defense council
On Monday, diplomatic contacts appeared to intensify. The UN called on the two generals to “immediately cease hostilities” as they could be “devastating for the country and the entire region”. But the United Nations envoy to Sudan, Volker Perthes, said he was not optimistic about a quick return to dialogue. “It’s hard to gauge which way the balance is moving,” he said.
At the end of the day, Egypt, a large influential neighbor, announced that it had discussed the situation with Saudi Arabia, South Sudan and Djibouti, three other important players in Sudan, as well as with Paris. Qatar, for its part, spoke with the President of the Commission of the African Union (AU), Moussa Faki Mahamat, supposed to go as soon as possible to Sudan, above which no plane flies anymore.
A sign that the subject is of concern to Cairo, President Abdel Fattah al-Sissi convened a rare defense council on Monday evening. He said he pleaded with both sides for “a return to the negotiating table” and worked for the “return” of Egyptian military “trainers” abducted on Saturday from a northern airbase by the RSF. General Hemetti assures that they are “safe”.