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On May 31, the Sudanese army suspended its participation in talks with the rival paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) in the Saudi Arabian port city of Jeddah.
The talks, which were launched in early May after pressure from Saudi Arabia and the United States, produced a declaration of commitments to protecting civilians as well as two temporary ceasefires that have been repeatedly violated by both sides.
In a statement announcing the suspension of the talks, the Sudanese army accused the RSF of a lack of commitment in implementing any terms of the agreement and a continuous violation of the ceasefire.
“The General Command of the Armed Forces has decided to suspend the current talks in Jeddah due to the rebel militia’s lack of commitment to the implementation any of the terms of the agreement and its continuous violation of the ceasefire,” according to the statement, which was posted on Sudan News Agency website.
From its side, the RSF accused the army of suspending the talks so that it could undermine them and of violating the ceasefire by using airpower and heavy artillery to attack its positions.
Commenting on the suspension of the talks, the U.S. accused both the army and the RSF of “serious violations of the ceasefire”.
“Once the forces make clear by their actions that they are serious about complying with the ceasefire, the United States and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia are prepared to resume facilitation of the suspended discussions to find a negotiated solution to this conflict,” a State Department spokesperson said.
“These violations have led us as a facilitator of these talks to seriously question whether the parties are ready to take the actions needed to meet the obligations they have undertaken on behalf of the Sudanese people,” he added.
The army and the RSF had agreed to extend a weeklong ceasefire deal by five days just before it was due to expire on May 29. However, clashes between the two sides continued in the capital, Khartoum, and other parts of Sudan.
The conflict in Sudan broke out on April 15 as a result of a disagreement over how the RSF should be integrated into the army and what authority should oversee the process during transition to civilian-led rule in the country. Since then, more than 1,800 people have been killed, according to the Armed Conflict Location and Event Data Project.
The fighting between the army and the RSF also forced nearly 1.4 million people to flee their homes, including more than 350,000 who have crossed into neighboring countries.
With the suspension of the talks in Jeddah, the conflict in Sudan has begun to take the shape of a civil war. If no settlement is reached soon, the fighting could go on for years.
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