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US adjourns Sudan truce talks as explosions continue to rock capital

Witnesses in the east of the capital Khartoum report artillery fire, while others in the northern suburbs say there is heavy shelling from an army barracks, with the force of the blasts shaking the walls of houses.

AP

The conflict has plunged Sudan into chaos, with combatants occupying homes, looting properties and committing other abuses. / Photo: AP

The United States has adjourned truce talks in Sudan because the format was not succeeding in the way they wanted, US Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs Molly Phee said.

"On Wednesday, yesterday, we adjourned those talks ... because the format is not succeeding in the way that we want," Phee said on Thursday.

But he reassured the public that "the entire US government is fully engaged in addressing this crisis given its impact not only for Sudan but for the region."

Saudi Arabia and the US have brokered ceasefires between Sudan's warring army and paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) at talks in Jeddah, but there have been reports of violations by both sides.

The latest ceasefire ended on Wednesday morning and fighting resumed within minutes as explosions rocked Khartoum, more than two months after fighting first broke out between the two sides.

The army accused the RSF of "taking advantage of the truce to mobilise its forces and commit several violations against civilians".

The RSF, in turn, accused the army of fabricating a video of a rape attack, alleging "one of the actors appeared in the uniform" of the armed forces, "proving their guilt".

Clashes resume in Sudan minutes after three-day ceasefire expires

'All types of weapons' being used

Fighting since April 15 between the army led by Abdel Fattah al Burhan, and the RSF headed by his former deputy Mohamed Hamdan Daglo has claimed more than 2,000 lives.

The deadliest fighting raged in Darfur, a vast region on Sudan's western border with Chad and home to ethnic African groups as well as Arab tribes. Here, the conflict has "taken an ethnic dimension", the United Nations has warned.

Meanwhile, in Nyala, the capital of South Darfur state, the army and paramilitary fighters clashed using "all types of weapons", residents told AFP news agency on Wednesday evening.

To address the conflict, at a donors' conference in Geneva on Monday, the international community pledged to raise $1.5 billion in aid for Sudan and neighbouring countries, but that amounted to less than half of the estimated needs.

"Those pledges are generous, yet they total only half of what the UN estimates is required to address humanitarian needs in the country and its neighbours," said Will Carter of the Norwegian Refugee Council.

In an article, Carter cited the testimony of a person who had fled Khartoum and met him in White Nile state, on the border with South Sudan.

"The bombs kept falling and the walls kept shaking," he quoted the unnamed person as saying. "The children stayed under their beds, but a bullet crossed into the wall a few inches from them."

Almost 600,000 people have fled Sudan for neighbouring countries, the International Organization for Migration said.