Renewed Clashes in Khartoum

Publication date: June 11, 2023 11:09 PM Saudi Arabia

The Resumption of Hostilities

Early yesterday morning, there were clashes and artillery shelling in some areas of Sudan’s capital Khartoum. The resumption of hostilities comes shortly after the end of a 24-hour truce that helped establish a brief truce in nearly two months of fighting. Witnesses said fighting resumed after a ceasefire at 6 a.m. in the north of Omdurman, which, along with neighboring Khartoum and Bahri, forms a metropolitan triangle around the confluence of the Nile River.

Reports of Explosions and Clashes

Residents said they heard artillery fire in the Shark al-Nil area on the eastern outskirts of the capital, and there were reports of explosions and clashes in Khartoum. On April 15, fighting broke out between the Sudanese army and paramilitary operational support forces due to tensions over an internationally backed plan for the transition to civilian rule.

Humanitarian Crisis

The conflict has claimed more than 1,800 lives, according to the Armed Conflict Locations and Events Data Project (ACLED). However, according to aid agencies and international organizations, the actual number of victims could be much higher. According to the UN International Organization for Migration, the conflict has displaced almost two million people, including more than 476,000 to neighboring countries.

Khartoum, which had a population of more than five million before the outbreak of hostilities, is suffering like other cities from food shortages, power outages, and a decline in basic services. Since the outbreak of hostilities, hundreds of thousands of residents have left it.

Hope for a Truce

Although residents’ expectations for a truce were modest, the fighting stopped on Friday, allowing residents of the capital to buy their daily necessities without falling into the trap of fighting. Humanitarian organizations have repeatedly warned of the gravity of the humanitarian situation in Sudan, especially in Khartoum and the Darfur region (west), where fighting is most intense. According to medical sources, three-quarters of hospitals in war zones are closed. There are fears that the crisis will deepen as the rainy season approaches, threatening a resurgence of malaria, food insecurity, and child malnutrition.

UN Representative Persona Non Grata

Yesterday, the Deputy UN Representative in Sudan said: “On the presentation of her credentials to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Sudan after Khartoum declared Volker Peretz, the representative of the UN Secretary-General, persona non grata. She said she “looks forward to leading the United Nations team and working with relevant government agencies and partners on the ground to alleviate suffering and provide vital assistance in support of Sudan and the Sudanese people.”