Sudan capital a 'ghost city' as residents flee after ceasefire breakdown
The fighting in Sudan has wreaked havoc for its residents and created a 'dire humanitarian situation', as Sejal Karia reports
A fifth day of heavy fighting in Sudan has left the capital a "ghost city" after an internationally brokered ceasefire quickly fell apart.
With no sign of respite, desperate and terrified Sudanese people who have been trapped for days in their homes by the violence raging on their doorsteps began to flee their homes, witnesses said.
"Khartoum has become a ghost city," said Atiya Abdalla Atiya, secretary of the Doctors’ Syndicate, who is still in the capital.
Mahasen Ali, a tea vendor, said many in her south Khartoum neighbourhood have left their homes to take refuge in open areas, hoping to be safe from shelling hitting buildings. Others fled the city to stay with relatives elsewhere, she said.
Armed men were roaming the streets, storming shops and houses. "They take whatever they can, and if you resist, they kill you," she said.
The rapid upheaval in Khartoum has led to water and food quickly running out, with many shops closed.
The failure of the ceasefire suggested the two rival generals fighting for control of the country were determined to crush each other in a potentially prolonged conflict.
Residents of multiple neighbourhoods of Khartoum told The Associated Press they could see hundreds, including women and children, carrying luggage, some leaving by foot, others crowding into vehicles.
Millions of people have been caught in the middle of the fight between two rival factions for control of the country.
According to the UN, at least 270 people have been killed in the past five days but the true toll is likely far higher.
The 24-hour ceasefire that was supposed to be in place from Tuesday night to Wednesday night was barely monitored by either side.
Its failure has dashed hopes it could be extended to a longer truce.
It came after US Secretary of State Antony Blinken spoke separately by phone with the two rivals - the leader of the armed forces, General Abdel Fattah Burhan, and the head of the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces, General Mohammed Hamdan Dagalo.
Egypt, which backs the Sudanese military, and Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, which have close ties to the RSF, have also been calling on all sides to stand down.
Fighting continued to rip through the city on Wednesday, with a high-rise in the city centre on fire with burning debris falling from its top floors, according to footage by the Al Arabiya news network.
The battles, with heavy machine guns, artillery and airstrikes, have wreaked extensive damage, playing out in the streets of Khartoum and the city of Omdurman on the opposite bank of the Nile River, as well as in other key towns around Sudan.
Dozens of healthcare facilities in Khartoum and around the country have stopped functioning because they are close to clashes, the Sudanese Doctors’ Syndicate said on Wednesday.
At least nine hospitals were bombed and 16 were forcefully evacuated, it said.
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The conflict between the military and the RSF has once again derailed Sudan’s transition to democratic rule after decades of dictatorship and civil war.
A popular uprising four years ago helped depose long-time autocrat Omar al-Bashir, but Burhan and Dagalo allied to carry out a 2021 coup.
Both generals have a long history of human rights abuses, and their forces have cracked down on pro-democracy activists.
Under international pressure, Burhan and Dagalo recently agreed to a framework agreement with political parties and pro-democracy groups.
But the signing was repeatedly delayed as tensions rose over the integration of the RSF into the armed forces and the future chain of command - tensions that exploded into violence on Saturday.