Sunday April 16, 2023
Heavy smoke bellows above buildings in the vicinity of the Khartoum's airport on April 15, 2023, amid clashes in the Sudanese capital. - Explosions rocked the Sudanese capital on April 15 as paramilitaries and the regular army traded attacks on each other's bases, days after the army warned the country was at a "dangerous" turning point. (Photo by AFP)
NAIROBI, Kenya Apr 16 – Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) has called for an immediate cessation of hostilities between the warring parties in Sudan.
President William Ruto asked IGAD leaders to take a firm position on the crisis to restore peace in the country.
The President spoke on Sunday during a virtual meeting with IGAD Heads of State on the deteriorating security in Sudan.
Those in the emergency session were Presidents Salva Kiir (South Sudan), Yoweri Museveni (Uganda), Ismail Omar Guelleh (Djibouti) and Hassan Sheikh Mohamud (Somalia).
The leaders called on the Transitional Sovereign Council General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and General Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo to stop the war and return to the negotiation table.
IGAD resolved to send Presidents Kiir, President Ruto and President Guelleh at the earliest possible time to reconcile the conflicting groups.
They said stability in Sudan is key to the region’s social and economic well-being.
The conflict, they added, undermines the peace progress achieved over the last four months.
The leaders also asked the two groups to provide a safe corridor for humanitarian assistance in the Khartoum and other affected towns.