Sudan: shelling rocks Khartoum as 24-hour ceasefire ends

As the latest in a series of ceasefire agreements ended in Sudan at 6am on Sunday (11 June), only minutes later gunfire and shelling resumed again in the capital Khartoum.
The 24-hour ceasefire agreement had given civilians rare respite from nearly two months of war, enabling them to venture outside and stock up on essential supplies or flee. Nearly two months into the war between army general Abdelfattah Al-Burhane and paramilitary commander Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, over 1,800 people have reportedly been killed and nearly two million people displaced, including 476,000 who have sought refuge in neighboring countries, according to the UN data. In this context, Egypt has announced a reversal in the visa exemption for children, women and elderly people, citing the need for a crackdown on “illegal activities” including fraud. The new measure means that Sudanese citizens will now have to obtain visas before crossing the border.
Multiple truces have been agreed and broken since the fighting started, and Washington had slapped sanctions on both rival generals after the last attempt in late May collapsed. The latest nationwide ceasefire was announced by US and Saudi mediators who warned they may break off mediation efforts if both sides fail to observe the latest 24-hour ceasefire. The mediators said they “share the frustration of the Sudanese people about the uneven implementation of previous ceasefires”. Friday’s announcement came a day after Sudanese authorities loyal to Al-Burhane declared UN envoy Volker Perthes “persona non grata”, accusing him of taking sides. But UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres later expressed support for Perthes, saying that “the doctrine of persona non grata is not applicable to or in respect of United Nations personnel”.