The Sudanese Armed Forces and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) had agreed to a 72-hour ceasefire which came into force at midnight to allow trapped foreign nationals to flee Sudan.
The paramilitary RSF group are accusing the Sudanese army of breaking the ceasefire which has seen “plane attacks” launched in Khartoum which is a “clear breach” of the agreement.
The RSF said in a statement that “cannons” were fired at their headquarters in the Sudanese capital, Khartoum which is “endangering the lives of civilians.”
The statement added, “The breach of the ceasefire by the Sudanese army is undeniable evidence of their thirst for war and Sudanese bloodshed, which must come to an end.”
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The Sudanese Army must adhere to the ceasefire which will “alleviate the suffering of innocent civilians,” the RSF said and have called on the international community to intervene.
Despite the ceasefire fighting has continued to rage outside the capital in the city of Omdurman which is across the Nile from Khartoum.
Heartbreaking video: “My dad declined invites for evacuation as he was promised evacuated by the British Embassy. Next thing we know by press release: ‘we’ve completed our successful evacuation, the Embassy is shut.’ My dad is waiting for you. They’ve all left without him”#Sudan pic.twitter.com/DVNn6jjz3m
— Dr. Jennifer A. Cassidy (@OxfordDiplomat) April 25, 2023
Sky News reported that a resident, Amin Ishaq said, “They stop only when they run out of ammunition.”
A doctor in Geneva, which is the provincial capital in West Darfur said, there are “Fierce battles are raging all over the city.
“All eyes are on Khartoum but the situation here is unimaginable.”
Child soldiers are on the streets of who are part of the RSF and Defence and security analyst Professor Michael Clarke warned Sky News, “A 13 or 14-year-old with an AK47 who thinks he’s a big shot is a very dangerous individual.
“So just getting a family to the airfield, or anywhere, in this situation is very dangerous.”
Brits who have been invited have been told they are to make their own way to an airfield on the outskirts of Khartoum, the problem is there is around 4,000 British passport holders trying escape.
What is happening in Sudan? In 2 minutes: pic.twitter.com/tC81dKipIk
— Bianca Nobilo (@bianca_nobilo) April 20, 2023
Clarke said, “The Hercules C-130 takes about 90 troops so if you cram people in a bit more you could get around 120 or 130 in.
“But it isn’t just a question of numbers, its a question of weight, a safe take off weight and safe landing weight.
“With the Atlas A400M, you could get around 120 soldiers in there so you could get around 150 civilians in that aircraft.
“But if there are 2,000 to 3,000 people who need evacuating, how many shuttles back and forth from Cyprus is that? Quite a lot.”
RAF aircraft are involved in a “large scale evacuation” to rescue around 4,000 trapped Britons from Sudan which has been described as “dangerous” and a very “complex operation.”
The RAF are to fly into the outskirts of the Sudanese capital, Khartoum and they will start with the extraction of those who have children, the vulnerable and the elderly.
Sir Nicholas Kay, a former British ambassador to Sudan, warned that the situation on the ground is “precarious” even though the ceasefire remains in place.
He told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme, “The security situation can change very quickly, the command and control over forces isn’t complete and there is no trust between the two sides so they might kick off again.”
He warned that Brits trying to move around Khartoum will be “very difficult” as attempting to cross bridges over the Blue and White Nile rivers are controlled by armed militia groups, Sir Nicholas warned.
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