Hemedti announces two-day Sudan truce for Eid al-Adha, amid spreading violence

The commander of Sudan's paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF)  announced on Monday a unilateral truce during the Islamic holiday of Eid al Adha.

General Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, better known as Hemedti, said in an audio recording uploaded to social media that the truce will be effective on Tuesday and Wednesday. 

“We are declaring a unilateral ceasefire, except for self-defence situations, on the eve of Eid and on the day of Eid al-Adha", Hemedti said, while expressing hope that there could be reconciliation and an alleviation of the humanitarian crisis.

The Sudanese Army has yet to make any statement on the ceasefire.

AT LEAST 15 CIVILIANS KILLED

The truce comes after Sudan's army confirmed on Monday that the RSF had taken the main base of a well-equipped police brigade in Khartoum and there were reports of fighting spreading for the first time to Blue Nile state near Ethiopia.

The RSF said it had captured dozens of armoured vehicles and pickup trucks after seizing the Central Reserve Police headquarters on Sunday, consolidating its position in southern Khartoum where several important military camps are situated.

The army had leant on the Central Reserve Police for ground fighting in Khartoum, where it has struggled to counter mobile RSF units which quickly spread out across the city once fighting erupted on April 15.

The #Sudanese Armed Forces reported that the Rapid Support Forces took over the Central Reserve Police headquarters in #Khartoum. The Rapid Support Forces announced that they are postponing the negotiations with the #Sudanese Armed Forces after Eid al-Adha, 28 June 2023. Rapid… https://t.co/CyQXWxacok

— Jonathan Bass (@jonsbass) June 27, 2023

The army said in a statement that the Central Reserve police base had been taken after three days of fighting, accusing the RSF of attacking "state institutions."

Local activists said at least 15 civilians had been killed in the fighting, and more than 80 had been seriously wounded.

FIGHTING SPREADS TO BLUE NILE 

Also on Monday, residents on social media reported an attack by the SPLM-N, Sudan's most powerful rebel group, in the city of Kurmuk in Blue Nile State, on the border with Ethiopia.

Reuters could not independently verify the reports. The United Nations mission in Sudan said hundreds of civilians had crossed the border into Ethiopia to seek safety due to clashes in Blue Nile on Sunday and Monday, while others appeared set to head north to Damazin, the state capital.

Clashes linked to tribal tensions in Blue Nile State left hundreds dead last year.

The SPLM-N last week clashed with the army in South Kordofan state, raising fears the conflict could spread across Sudan's southern regions.

UNITAMS expresses grave concern about the recent violence in Kurmuk locality of the Blue Nile Region and urges all parties involved to immediately cease fighting in the interest of protecting the local population!

-More in this statement👇https://t.co/4sEGuwtVW4

— UN Integrated Transition Assistance Mission Sudan (@UNITAMS) June 26, 2023

The war between the army and the RSF erupted amid disputes over internationally backed plans for a transition towards elections under a civilian government.

Fighting has intensified through a series of ceasefire deals negotiated by Saudi Arabia and the United States at talks in Jeddah that were suspended last week.

The war has caused a major humanitarian crisis, uprooting more than 2.5 million people, about 600,000 of whom have crossed into neighbouring countries. Most have headed north to Egypt or west into Chad, where refugees have sought shelter from ethnically motivated attacks and clashes in Sudan's Darfur region.

(Reuters)