A military aircraft is destroyed during fighting between Sudanese army soldiers and the Rapid Support Force (RSF), at Merowe Airport, Northern Sudan. Photo: AFP/VNA

Blinken conducted separate phone calls with Sudanese Armed Forces Commander General Abdel Fattah al Burhan, who also chairs the Sovereign Council of Sudan, and with General Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, Commander of the Rapid Support Forces (RSF). This ceasefire is intended to ensure the safe passage of civilians and the evacuation of the wounded.

Fighting continued in Sudan, however, hours after the internationally brokered truce was supposed to have come into effect.  Forces loyal to the two generals battled for key locations in the capital and accused each other of violating the cease-fire. Residents said they were still hearing gunfire and explosions in different parts of the capital, Khartoum, particularly around the military’s headquarters and the Republican Palace. A member of the group Sudan Doctors said the fighting remains underway and they are hearing constant gunfire.

Fighting has raged in several parts of Sudan since last Saturday, when the Sudanese army and the Rapid Support Forces clashed. According to the United Nations, at least 200 people were killed and more than 2,600 others injured in three days of fighting. The Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies said it is almost impossible to provide humanitarian services in and around the capital Khartoum, and warned that Sudan’s health system is on the brink of collapse.

The African Union (AU), the Arab League (AL), the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD), of which Sudan is a member, and the international community have condemned the violence and called on all parties to dialogue to find a solution to the crisis. Egypt and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) are attempting to broker a ceasefire in Sudan.