Sudan fighting rages amid warning of ‘protracted’ conflict

Air strikes and gunfire rocked Sudan’s capital yesterday as fighting showed no sign of abating, despite the threat of renewed US sanctions and mounting deaths, including dozens of children.Hundreds have died in nearly three weeks of fighting between forces of Sudan’s de facto leader Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, who leads the regular army, and his deputy turned rival Mohamed Hamdan Daglo, who commands the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF).Battles persisted a day after US President Joe Biden threatened sanctions against those responsible for "threatening the peace, security, and stability of Sudan" and "undermining Sudan’s democratic transition".The north African country had already suffered under decades of sanctions during the rule of Omar al-Bashir, ousted in 2019 following mass protests on the streets."The violence taking place in Sudan is a tragedy — and it is a betrayal of the Sudanese people’s clear demand for civilian government and a transition to democracy. It must end," Biden said.Witnesses reported continued air strikes and explosions in various parts of Khartoum yesterday, including near the airport.The RSF has yet to respond following the announcement Wednesday of a seven-day truce brokered by neighbouring South Sudan and accepted by the army.But early yesterday, the paramilitary group said it was extending by only three days a previous truce brokered under US-Saudi mediation.The conflict has killed about 700 people so far, most of them in Khartoum and the western Darfur region, according to the Armed Conflict Location and Event Data Project. The UN children’s agency, Unicef, warned yesterday that "the situation in Sudan has become fatal for a frighteningly large number of children".Spokesman James Elder said the agency had received reports from a trusted partner — not yet independently verified by the UN — that 190 children were killed and 1,700 wounded during the first 11 days of the conflict.He said the figures had been gathered from health facilities in Khartoum and Darfur since fighting broke out on April 15, meaning they only cover children who actually made it to facilities in those areas. "The reality is likely to be much worse," Elder warned.Aid workers have struggled to get much-needed supplies to the areas hit by violence.According to the International Medical Corps, at least 18 aid workers have been killed amid the fierce urban fighting.The UN Human Rights Council said it would hold a special session next Thursday "to address the human rights impact of the ongoing conflict".Multiple truces have been agreed throughout the fighting, but none has been respected.US Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines said Thursday that Washington expected the conflict to continue for a long time. The fighting was "likely to be protracted as both sides believe that they can win militarily, and have few incentives to come to the negotiating table", she told a Senate hearing."Both sides are seeking external sources of support, which, if successful, is likely to intensify the conflict and create a greater potential for spillover challenges in the region."