Fighting has stopped in Sudan after the country’s army and paramilitary group agreed to a 72-hour ceasefire, and a hasty evacuation of citizens from other countries is ongoing, Reuters writes.
The Sudanese armed forces have reported that the US and Saudi Arabia helped organize the ceasefire. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken was the first to announce the ceasefire, which he said had taken two days of intense negotiations.
The conflict between the Sudanese army and the paramilitary group began on the 15th of April, and since then has claimed at least 427 lives, disrupted the work of hospitals and other basic services, and turned residential areas of the country’s capital, Khartoum, into a war zone. An eyewitness told Reuters that
after a relatively quiet night, gunshots could be heard again near the capital.
The British government has begun a large-scale evacuation by military aircraft using an airfield north of Khartoum.
Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida announced on Tuesday, the 25th of April, that all Japanese who wanted to leave Sudan have been evacuated.
The Swiss foreign minister has stated that Bern is looking for ways to evacuate the Swiss citizens who remained there from Sudan. Switzerland has already closed the embassy and evacuated its employees and their families.
Before the ceasefire, the fighting took place mainly in Khartoum and nearby towns. The international airport in the center of the capital, near the army’s command center, is still shrouded in black smoke. UN Secretary-General António Guterres has stated that the conflict in Sudan may have unpredictable consequences for the entire region. Tens of thousands of people have already left Sudan.
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