Sudan’s leader approves seven-day humanitarian ceasefire in El-Fasher

Sudan’s Sovereign Council President, General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, has approved a seven-day humanitarian ceasefire in El-Fasher, the capital of North Darfur, amid intensifying clashes between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF).

The announcement follows a phone call between Burhan and UN Secretary-General António Guterres, during which Guterres called for a temporary truce to facilitate the delivery of humanitarian aid to civilians caught in the fighting.

In a statement released Friday, the Sovereign Council confirmed Burhan’s agreement to the ceasefire and emphasized the need to uphold relevant UN Security Council resolutions. However, the statement did not specify when the truce would begin. The RSF has not yet commented on the proposal.

Since May 10, 2024, El-Fasher has seen escalating violence between the army and RSF, despite repeated international warnings. The city is considered a strategic gateway for humanitarian operations across Darfur's five states, and continued fighting threatens to deepen the humanitarian crisis.

Sudan plunged into civil war when rival generals heading the country’s armed forces and paramilitary Rapid Support Forces started fighting each other in mid-April 2023. Since then, at least 24,000 people have died, about 13 million Sudanese have fled their homes, famine is setting in and cholera is sweeping across the country. Both sides have been accused of war crimes.