The China Mail - Sudan deaths mount as army chief rules out talks

More than 300 people have been killed since the fighting erupted Saturday between forces loyal to Sudan's army chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and his deputy, Mohamed Hamdan Daglo, who commands the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF).

Some of the fiercest fighting has been in Khartoum, a city of five million people, most of whom have been sheltering at home without electricity, food and water.

As battles raged for a sixth day, Burhan dismissed any prospects for negotiations with Daglo, telling Al Jazeera he sees no option but "decisive military" action.

"I do not think there is any room for talks over politics again with the Rapid Support Forces," he told the Qatar-based broadcaster, but said he was open to mediation.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called for a ceasefire of "at least three days" over Eid al-Fitr, beginning Friday and marking the end of the holy month of Ramadan.

Two ceasefires in as many days have failed to take hold, with witnesses saying "shelling did not stop" in Khartoum, as another ceasefire was breached Wednesday within minutes of its supposed start.

Gunfire continued Thursday, with columns of thick black smoke rising from buildings around Khartoum International Airport and the army headquarters.

"We were awoken... to the roaring sound of fighter jets and air strikes," said Nazek Abdalla, a 38-year-old in southern Khartoum. "We locked our doors and windows, hoping no stray bullets would hit our building."

While many sheltered at home, others were venturing out and risking it "to protect themselves and their families", said architect Tagreed Abdin.

Beyond Khartoum, witnesses reported loud explosions in the city of Obeid, in the central state of North Kordofan.

- 'Reeks of death' -

"It reeks of death in some parts of town," said one witness in the city.

Ahmed al-Mandhari of the World Health Organization said Thursday that "almost 330 people have died and almost 3,200 more" had been wounded in Khartoum, the western Darfur region and other states.

The fighting has taken a heavy toll on civilians, with UN children's agency UNICEF saying "at least nine children have reportedly been killed".

The World Food Programme (WFP) warned that the violence could plunge millions more into hunger in a country where 15 million people, one-third of the population, already face food insecurity.

It has suspended its Sudan operations after the Saturday killing of three WFP workers.

"We wish the fighting would stop during Eid festivities," said Abdalla. "We know it will not happen though."

Burhan and Daglo's bitter dispute centred around the planned integration of the RSF into the regular army -- a key condition for a final deal aimed at restoring Sudan's democratic transition.

Around Khartoum and elsewhere, RSF fighters in armoured vehicles and pickups mounted with machineguns have taken over the streets.

Many have mounted checkpoints to search cars carrying civilians trying to escape the worst battle zones to safer areas in Khartoum and beyond.

Civilians are becoming increasingly desperate. By Tuesday, thousands had fled the capital, with many reporting streets strewn with corpses.

- Hospitals hit -

Medics have warned of a catastrophe, especially in Khartoum where many hospitals were reportedly caught in crossfire.

As many as 70 percent of the hospitals in Khartoum and neighbouring states have been rendered "out of service" by the fighting, the doctors' union said.

It has warned the death toll was likely to be far higher, with many wounded unable to reach hospitals.

Several countries' evacuation plans have been put on hold, the Pentagon announced Thursday it was deploying forces "nearby in the region", with hopes of "securing and potentially facilitating the departure of US Embassy personnel from Sudan".

The Sudanese army said 177 Egyptian soldiers were evacuated from the northern city of Meroe to Egypt, which confirmed their arrival. The RSF said later it handed over another 27 Egyptian soldiers to the Sudanese Red Cross, and Cairo confirmed their arrival at Egypt's Khartoum embassy.

The United Arab Emirates said it had "led" the mediation for the Egyptians held by the RSF.

Burhan and Daglo toppled autocratic president Omar al-Bashir together in April 2019 following massive protests against three decades of iron-fisted rule.

In October 2021, they again worked together to oust the civilian government installed following Bashir's downfall, derailing an internationally backed transition to democracy.

Burhan, whose career advanced under Bashir, has maintained his coup was "necessary" to bring more factions into politics.

But Daglo, who rose to prominence during Bashir's scorched-earth policy against Darfuri rebels, has since called the coup a "mistake" that failed to bring change and instead invigorated Bashir diehards.

Z.Ma--ThChM