“Saudi Arabia and the United States welcome the Sudanese army forces and the HDK to extend the ceasefire agreement for another 5 days,” the statement on the Twitter account of the US Embassy in Khartoum said.
It was stated that the decision to extend the ceasefire would allow time to provide more humanitarian assistance and basic services and to discuss a long-term ceasefire.
In the statement, it was stated that the ceasefire signed on May 20, although not fully implemented, ensured the delivery of humanitarian aid to approximately 1 million Sudanese people in need, and that more humanitarian efforts would be made.
short-term ceasefire
The parties announced that they declared a one-week ceasefire on May 20, through the United States and Saudi Arabia, to be effective as of 21.45 on Monday, May 22.
One day after the ceasefire took effect, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken warned that Sudanese generals would face sanctions if they did not comply with the final ceasefire.
Clashes continued during the ceasefire that ended tonight. Both sides accused each other of violating the ceasefire.
Clashes between the army and the HDK in Sudan
The army wanted the HDK, which it once supported but regarded as a threat because it acted as an independent and parallel army, to be fully integrated into the army within 2 years, and the speech began with the HDK’s statement that it could accept this in a period spanning about 10 years after a civilian government. The war and the escalating tension had turned into an armed conflict between the parties on the morning of April 15, in the capital Khartoum and in various cities.
The HDK was formed as a militia structure to fight against the rebels, protect the borders and maintain order in Darfur during the period of President Omar al-Bashir, who was overthrown in a coup d’etat in 2019. The HDK, which was affiliated with the Security and Intelligence Organization in 2013 and later became more independent, has tens of thousands of members.
Stating that more than one million people were displaced within the country, the United Nations announced that 300,000 people fled to neighboring countries due to conflicts.
Sudan’s Ministry of Health announced that 709 people have been killed and 5,424 injured since the beginning of the conflict.