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☆ 'Constant fear': war shakes Sudan despite truce pledges
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-28 | by ( Khalid Abdelaziz | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

The fighting has also reawakened a two-decade-old conflict in the western Darfur region where scores have died this week. "We're in a constant state of fear for ourselves and our children." The army has been deploying jets or drones on RSF forces spread out in neighbourhoods across the capital. Sudan's army accused the RSF of firing at the plane, damaging its fuel system which was being repaired after the aircraft managed to land safely. Some had walked from Khartoum to South Sudan's border, a distance of over 400 km (250 miles), a spokesperson for the U.N. refugee agency said.

☆ US, African states race to extend Sudan truce, gunfire still heard
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-27 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

REUTERS/Mahamet RamdaneKHARTOUM, April 27 (Reuters) - The United States and African nations were racing to secure an extension of a ceasefire in Sudan on Thursday, with the Sudanese army giving an initial nod to an African proposal calling for talks even as fighting continued. Gunfire could be heard on Thursday in the Khartoum area, a resident told Reuters. The military said the presidents of South Sudan, Kenya and Djibouti worked on a proposal that includes extending the truce and talks between the two forces. "Burhan thanked the IGAD and expressed an initial approval to that," the army statement said. The U.N. refugee agency has estimated 270,000 people could flee into South Sudan and Chad alone.

☆ Sudanese help one another find medicine, water as state collapses
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-23 | by ( Mai Shams El-Din | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Elsewhere, individuals have used technology to match local stocks of food, fresh water and medicine to neighbourhoods in need. It mobilised a team of surgeons and other medics, reopened a local health centre for urgent cases and set up a hotline for less urgent ones. It has handled at least 25 medical cases since the fighting began, Surketty said. With most of Khartoum's hospitals shut down, and the few still open offering only limited services, medical needs have been intense. They're not meant to be treated using Telehealth, they actually need to go to a hospital," Mujtaba said.

[1/5] People gather to get bread during clashes between the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces and the army in Khartoum North, Sudan, April 22, 2023. The army and the paramilitary RSF, which are waging a deadly power struggle across the country, had both issued statements saying they would uphold a three-day ceasefire from Friday for Islam's Eid al-Fitr holiday. The army has air power but the RSF is widely embedded in urban areas including around key facilities in central Khartoum. The army said the United States, Britain, France and China would evacuate diplomats and other nationals from Khartoum "in the coming hours". The army on Friday accused the RSF of raiding the prison, which the paramilitary force denied.

The army and the paramilitary RSF, which are waging a deadly power struggle across the country, had both issued statements saying they would uphold a three-day ceasefire from Friday for Islam's Eid al-Fitr holiday. The army has air power but the RSF is widely embedded in urban areas including around key facilities in central Khartoum. Burhan said the army was providing safe pathways but that some airports including in Khartoum and Darfur's largest city Nyala were still problematic. [1/5] People gather to get bread during clashes between the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces and the army in Khartoum North, Sudan, April 22, 2023. The army on Friday accused the RSF of raiding the prison, which the paramilitary force denied.

This year, those who can are making a frantic escape from Khartoum, driven out by war. Both sides in the conflict agreed to a ceasefire but it was not immediately clear when it would begin. Ahmed Mubarak, 27, said he felt "extreme anxiety" after the violence erupted on April 15 and before he decided to leave Khartoum on Thursday, taking with him only the clothes he was wearing. Makram Waleed, a 25-year-old doctor, was hoping to leave Khartoum with his family but was worried about the dangers to his three younger sisters. And if we leave, will we be able to go back to our house and our lives in Khartoum?

[1/4] People gather at the station to flee from Khartoum during clashes between the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces and the army in Khartoum, Sudan April 19, 2023. Guterres and senior officials from the U.S., Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Turkey and Egypt called Sudan's army chief General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan to urge an end to violence. Urging a three-day ceasefire, he said civilians trapped in conflict zones should be allowed to escape and to seek medical treatment, food and other supplies. Witnesses in the city of El-Obeid, east of Darfur, described clashes between the army and RSF troops and widespread looting. Many other local people remain trapped, along with thousands of foreigners in a city that has become a war zone.

[1/2] Smoke rises from burning aircraft inside Khartoum Airport during clashes between the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces and the army in Khartoum, Sudan April 17, 2023. Gunfire was heard in Bahri and residents reported violent clashes west of Omdurman where they said the army had moved to block the arrival of RSF reinforcements. Some of the most intense fighting has been focussed around the compound housing the army HQ and the residence of Sudan's military ruler, General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan. The army controls access to Khartoum and appeared to be trying to cut off supply routes to RSF fighters, residents and witnesses said. More people have been leaving the capital with most able to pass but some stopped at checkpoints, according to residents and social media posts.

"The hospitals now serving the wounded are so few, with limited number of doctors, so there's overcrowding of wounded," said Esraa Abou Shama, a doctor at Sudan's health ministry. Over four days of fighting nine hospitals in Sudan have been hit by artillery and 16 forcibly evacuated, the Sudanese Doctors' Union said, with none still providing a full service inside the capital. His hospital's water and cooking gas tanks have been hit, many staff fled, and diesel fuel for the power generator is almost exhausted, he said. Staff cannot access the morgue because of the fighting, so dead bodies are stored in rooms with air conditioning turned up. "We all have the same problems - electricity, water, staff.

☆ Sudan's army chief, the warlord and a feud that risks civil war
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-19 | by ( Michael Georgy | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +7 min

ABANDONING THEIR BENEFACTORAmid the bloodshed, Hemedti captured the attention of Bashir, a general who came to power in a 1989 coup. Bashir also gave his family and associates free rein to sell Sudan's gold, helping him amass a fortune. In the aftermath, Hemedti secured the post of deputy head of state, a position that technically reports to Burhan. Like Sudan's army, the RSF deployed fighters to Yemen where Gulf Arab states have fought a proxy war for years against Iranian-backed Houthis. The military wants the RSF integrated into the regular army and under its controls, two military sources said.

The army's high command said it would continue operations to secure the capital and other regions. Khartoum residents were asked to limit their electricity usage, as the state's distribution authority said the servers that manage online purchases of power had gone out of service. Many residents planned to travel south to rural areas of Khartoum state or Gezira state if the ceasefire had held. The outbreak of fighting pitting Sudan's military leader General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan against RSF chief General Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, followed rising tensions over a plan for the RSF's integration into the regular military. Reporting by Khalid Abdelaziz in Khartoum, Nafisa Eltahir; Writing by Aidan Lewis; Editing by Frank Jack DanielOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

The regular army and the rival paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) issued statements accusing each other of failing to respect the ceasefire. "We have not received any indications here that there's been a halt in the fighting," United Nations spokesman Stephane Dujarric told a news briefing in New York. The fighting has triggered what the United Nations has described as a humanitarian catastrophe, including the near collapse of the health system. Fighting also raged in the west of the country, the United Nations said. [1/7] Satellite image shows a closer view of a burning building at the Merowe Airbase, Sudan, April 18, 2023.

From a vantage point in his home, Motasim said that earlier on Tuesday he could see RSF troops aiming anti-aircraft missiles from the street below. Residents from other districts said shops had been looted and people ejected from homes by armed men. In the well-heeled Khartoum 2 district, an area that is home to embassies and RSF offices, residents said RSF troops had stormed homes and raided supermarkets. RSF buildings and bases are dispersed across the capital, often in densely populated areas that have become a focus for fighting. Elsewhere in the capital area, several people told Reuters they saw RSF troops dispersing quickly into streets of residential districts when airstrikes began.

[1/3] Smoke rises from the tarmac of Khartoum International Airport as a fire burns, in Khartoum, Sudan April 17, 2023 in this screen grab obtained from a social media video. U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said an immediate ceasefire was needed, saying that view was shared by the international community. By Sunday it appeared that the army was gaining the upper hand in the fighting in Khartoum, using air strikes to pound RSF bases. Sudan has been affected by rising levels of hunger in recent years as an economic crisis has deepened. The WFP says it reached 9.3 million people in Sudan, one of its largest operations globally.

The Sudanese Doctors' Union earlier reported at least 25 people were killed and 183 wounded in battles that erupted on Saturday between the military and the RSF. The army told soldiers seconded to the RSF to report to nearby army units, which could deplete RSF ranks if they obey. The military and RSF, which analysts say is 100,000 strong, have been competing for power as political factions negotiate forming a transitional government after a 2021 military coup. The RSF shared a video that it said showed Egyptian troops who "surrendered" to them in Merowe. Clashes also erupted between the RSF and army in the Darfur cities of El Fasher and Nyala, eyewitnesses said.

☆ World Food Programme halts Sudan operations, 3 workers killed
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-16 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

CAIRO,April 16 (Reuters) - The United Nations' World Food Programme (WFP) said on Sunday it had temporarily halted all operations in Sudan after three of its employees were killed in clashes between the Sudanese army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) a day earlier. "While we review the evolving security situation, we are forced to temporarily halt all operations in Sudan," WFP executive director Cindy McCain said in a statement. The incident has seriously impacted the organisation's ability to move humanitarian workers and aid in Sudan, he said. Earlier on Sunday, the United Nations condemned the killing of the WFP employees, saying they died while carrying out their duties. The fighting broke out on Saturday between army units loyal to General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), led by General Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, known as Hemedti.

☆ Sudan's RSF says it's ready to cooperate over Egyptian troops
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-15 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

REUTERS/Mohamed Nureldin AbdallahCAIRO, April 15 (Reuters) - The head of Sudan's paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) said on Saturday that his forces were ready to cooperate with Egypt to ease the return of Egyptian troops who had handed themselves over to the group in the northern Sudanese town of Merowe. Two Egyptian security sources said Egyptian officials were able to make contact with the leader of the Egyptian unit to confirm they were safe. The video showed a number of men dressed in army fatigues crouched on the ground and speaking to members of the RSF, Sudan's main paramilitary group, in an Egyptian Arabic dialect. A mobilisation of RSF forces towards Merowe's military airport on Wednesday prompted an army statement a day later that described recent RSF moves as illegal, bringing long-bubbling disagreements to the surface. It strongly supports Sudan's army and has recently promoted negotiations with pro-army political parties, in parallel to a plan for a transition towards elections backed by Hemedti.

☆ Sudan's military leader ready to take any step to end paramilitary standoff - mediators
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-15 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

KHARTOUM, April 15 (Reuters) - Sudan's head of state and army chief General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan is prepared to take any step to solve an ongoing standoff with the powerful paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), a group of mediators including leaders of other paramilitary groups said in a statement early on Saturday. "We reassure citizens that the crisis is on the way to being solved," they said. Tension between the army and RSF escalated on Thursday after the RSF moved some of its forces near a military airport in the northern city of Merowe, following weeks of deployments, moves the army said happened without its consent. Reporting by Nafisa Eltahir and Muhammad Al GebalyOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

The Sudanese air force is conducting operations against the RSF, the army said. Footage from broadcasters showed a military aircraft in the sky above Khartoum, but Reuters could not independently confirm the material. A Reuters journalist saw cannon and armoured vehicles deployed in streets, and heard heavy weapons fire near the headquarters of both the army and RSF. The RSF, which analysts say is 100,000 strong, said its forces were attacked first by the army. Civilian political parties that had signed an initial power-sharing deal with the army and the RSF called on them to cease hostilities.

☆ Sudan's paramilitary force shares video they claim shows 'surrendered' Egyptian troops
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-15 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

[1/2] Smoke rises in Omdurman, near Halfaya Bridge, during clashes between the Paramilitary Rapid Support Forces and the army as seen from Khartoum North, Sudan April 15, 2023. REUTERS/Mohamed Nureldin AbdallahCAIRO, April 15 (Reuters) - Sudan's paramilitary Rapid Support Forces shared a video on Saturday that they said showed Egyptian troops who had "surrendered" to them in Merowe, northern Sudan. This occurred as clashes erupted between the RSF, Sudan's main paramilitary group, and the army on Saturday. There was no clear explanation for the presence of Egyptian troops in Merowe on Saturday, but Egyptian and Sudanese troops have periodically staged joint military exercises in the north of the country in the wake of diplomatic tensions with Ethiopia. Reuters could not immediately verify the footage and Egyptian authorities did not immediately make any public comment on the matter.

☆ Sudan's army says paramilitary mobilisation risks confrontation
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-13 | by ( Khalid Abdelaziz Nafisa Eltahir | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

"These movements and deployments happened without the agreement of the leadership of the armed forces or even coordination with it," the army spokesman said. Deputy head of Sudan's sovereign council General Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo speaks during a press conference at Rapid Support Forces head quarter in Khartoum, Sudan February 19, 2023. Witnesses told Reuters that they saw a convoy of RSF vehicles including armoured trucks enter Khartoum on Thursday. Political figures issued statements on Thursday about attempts to mediate between the RSF and army high command. Hemedti, who has amassed considerable wealth and expanded domestic and foreign relations, has said repeatedly in speeches that he wants no confrontation with the army.

☆ Factbox: The struggle for power in Sudan
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-06 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

The following outlines the struggle for power in Sudan in recent years:WHO HAS BEEN IN CHARGE IN SUDAN? Sudan began its halting transition towards democracy after military generals ousted long-ruling autocrat Omar al-Bashir amid a popular uprising in April 2019. Under an August 2019 agreement, the military agreed to share power with civilians ahead of elections. That arrangement was abruptly halted by the 2021 coup, which triggered a new campaign of mass pro-democracy rallies across Sudan. The military has been a dominant force in Sudan since independence in 1956, staging coups, fighting internal wars, and amassing economic holdings.

☆ Sudan's years of political strife
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-06 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

April 6, 2019 - Hundreds of thousands of protesters begin a sit-in outside army headquarters in Khartoum. Five days later the army overthrows and detains autocratic leader Omar al-Bashir, ending his three-decade rule. Aug. 17, 2019 - Civilian groups that backed the uprising sign a deal to share power with the military during a transitional period leading to elections. June 16, 2022 - The U.N. World Food Programme says more than a third of Sudan's population is facing acute food insecurity due to factors including economic and political crises, climate shocks and conflict. Dec. 5, 2022 - Civilian groups sidelined by the coup sign an initial deal with the military to start a new, two-year political transition and appoint a civilian government.

CAIRO, March 9 (Reuters) - Egypt, one of the world's largest wheat importers, has given notice it will withdraw at the end of June from a decades-old U.N. grains treaty, causing consternation among some other signatories to the convention. Egypt signed the GTC, the only international treaty covering trade in grains, at its inception in 1995, and has been a member of the council that governs it since 1949. Several delegations within the IGC are surprised and sad about the decision," Arnaud Petit, executive director of the International Grains Council, which administers the treaty, told Reuters. Other signatories to the GTC include major grain importers and exporters such as the United States and the European Union. Two sources familiar with the matter, who asked to remain anonymous, told Reuters that Egypt owed the IGC membership fees.

☆ Egypt unveils renovations of venerable Tahrir Square Museum
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-21 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/2] Egyptian Minister of Tourism and Antiquities Ahmed Issa talks to the media at the Egyptian Museum during a news conference by Egypt's ministry of tourism and antiquities that unveiled a renovated wing at the museum, in Cairo, Egypt February 20, 2023. REUTERS/Amr Abdallah DalshCAIRO, Feb 21 (Reuters) - Egypt has inaugurated the first phase of renovations on the venerable Egyptian Museum in central Cairo, giving the collection a facelift after many of its objects were relocated to other museums around the country. Egypt hopes to grow its tourism industry by 25% to 30% a year, Tourism Minister Ahmed Issa said at the inauguration ceremony on Monday. The renovation, financed by the European Union and assisted by five major European museums including the Louvre and British Museum, was designed to modernise the presentation of the objects. "The Egyptian Museum continues to develop itself, allowing it to compete with the other major modern museums," Issa said.

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