fierce fighting in Darfur despite the mediation of the Americans and the Saudis – RT in French

Fighting between soldiers and paramilitaries who are vying for power in Sudan are raging on May 26 in the Darfur region (west), on the fourth day of a ceasefire negotiated by American and Saudi mediators but never respected.

In al-Facher, capital of North Darfur, “fighting with all types of weapons” continues, according to testimonies from residents.

The war that broke out in Sudan on April 15 between the army led by General Abdel Fattah al-Burhane and the paramilitaries of General Mohamed Hamdane Daglo’s Rapid Support Forces (RSF) has claimed more than 1,800 lives, according to the NGO Acled.

It has also forced more than a million Sudanese to move within this East African country, one of the poorest in the world, and at least 300,000 inhabitants have taken refuge in the countries neighbours, themselves in crisis, according to the UN.

More than half of Sudan’s population – 25 million out of a total of 45 million – now needs humanitarian aid to survive, according to the UN.

American and Saudi mediators negotiated a two-week “temporary ceasefire” with the two sides, which came into effect on the evening of May 22, to allow the delivery of humanitarian aid, impossible so far. No humanitarian corridor could be secured, also blocking civilians who want to leave.

Washington promises sanctions

The military and paramilitary accuse each other of breaking the truce. The US State Department indicated on May 25 that it was still seeing “violations” of the ceasefire, particularly in Khartoum and Darfur.

Washington has promised ‘sanctions’, and the ceasefire agreement includes a ‘monitoring mechanism’, but so far no announcement has been made against one side or the other .

The situation is particularly critical in Darfur, the western border region of Chad, already ravaged in the 2000s by a particularly deadly war.