A US diplomatic convoy to Sudan came under fire on Monday but no one was injured, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Tuesday, who spoke separately to the two rival generals vying for power.
“I can confirm that an American diplomatic convoy came under fire” in Sudan on Monday, Blinken said. “All our staff are safe and sound” but this act is “irresponsible”, he added to the press after a meeting of G7 foreign ministers in Japan
“This incident is still under investigation to determine what exactly happened. According to initial information available to us, this is the work of forces associated with the FSR”, the paramilitary units of General Mohamed Hamdane Daglo, he specified, recalling that the convoy had well-identified license plates.
Monday evening, the head of European diplomacy Josep Borrell announced that the EU ambassador to Sudan had been “attacked” at his home.
In their joint statement after their meeting in Japan, the chief diplomats of the G7 countries called on Tuesday for an “immediate” end to the fighting in Sudan, which they condemned “strongly”.
Mr. Blinken also said he for his part spoke separately on Tuesday with the two rival generals and insisted with them “on the urgency of reaching a ceasefire”.
A ceasefire “would make it possible to provide humanitarian aid to people affected by the fighting, to reunite Sudanese families (dispersed by the fighting, editor’s note) and to ensure the safety of members of the international community in Khartoum”, he said.
Clashes in Sudan since Saturday between the regular army of General Abdel Fattah al-Burhane and the paramilitary forces of his former ally, General Mohamed Hamdane Daglo, known as “Hemedti”, have already left nearly 200 dead and at least 1,800 injured. , according to the UN.
UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres had already called on the two rival generals on Monday to “immediately cease hostilities”.
Monday, on the sidelines of the G7 meeting, Mr. Blinken and his British counterpart James Cleverly had also called for the “immediate cessation” of violence and the resumption of talks.
“The Sudanese want the soldiers back in the barracks. They want democracy. They want a government run by civilians. Sudan must find this way, ”insisted the head of American diplomacy.
This article is originally published on journaldequebec.com
