Sounds of fighting echoed in southern Khartoum today, Sunday, while representatives from both sides of the Sudanese war are in Saudi Arabia for discussions that international mediators hope will put an end to the ongoing conflict that has lasted three weeks. The talks in Jeddah are part of a U.S.-Saudi initiative, marking the first serious attempt to end the fighting between the army by proposing an internationally supported plan aimed at transitioning to civilian rule after years of unrest and uprisings. The Kingdom has also decided to offer humanitarian assistance to Sudan amounting to $100 million, according to Saudi channel Al-Ekhbariya.
While mediators seek to find a path to peace, both sides have made it clear they will only discuss a humanitarian truce and will not negotiate to end the war. Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, known as Hemedti, the commander of the Rapid Support Forces, confirmed his group's participation in the talks, saying he "hopes to achieve the desired goal of opening a safe corridor for civilians." Hemedti had pledged to either capture or kill army chief, Lt. Gen. Abdel Fattah al-Burhan. There is evidence on the ground indicating that both sides remain reluctant to reach a compromise to halt the bloodshed.
Western powers have supported the political transition plan and the formation of a civilian government in Sudan, which sits at a strategic crossroads between Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Ethiopia, and the troubled Sahel region of Africa. "We were lucky to travel to Abu Dhabi, but what is happening in Khartoum, where I have spent all my life, is heartbreaking... Leaving your life and memories is something indescribable," said 75-year-old Abdel Qader, who boarded an evacuation flight to the Emirates.
Since the outbreak of fighting in mid-April, hundreds have been killed, thousands injured, aid supplies disrupted, and 100,000 refugees fled the country. Thousands are seeking to leave through Port Sudan, boarding boats heading to Saudi Arabia or paying for expensive commercial flights to depart from the only functioning airport in the country or through evacuation flights. The conflict erupted on April 15 after the collapse of an internationally supported plan for a transition to democracy. Before fighting broke out, Hemedti took steps such as approaching the civil alliance, indicating that he had political plans, while Burhan blamed the war on Hemedti's "ambitions."
