Arab League calls for cease-fire in war-torn Sudan

CAIRO

Arab League Secretary-General Ahmed Aboul Gheit called Sunday for a cease-fire in Sudan amid fighting between the military and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) paramilitary group.

Aboul Gheit held talks in Cairo with Abdullah Hamdok, a former prime minister and head of Sudan’s Coordination of Civil Democratic Forces (Taqaddum).

The Arab League chief said halting the war in Sudan and maintaining the country’s territorial integrity is a top priority for the pan-Arab body, the league said in a statement.

“The Arab League is fully ready to provide any needed assistance to the Sudanese parties to solve the crisis,” Aboul Gheit said.

According to the statement, Hamdok explained his bloc’s efforts to reach a cease-fire in Sudan and launch dialogue between the country’s political forces.

On Friday, the UN Security Council called for an immediate cessation of hostilities in Sudan during the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan, due to start on Monday.

A UK-drafted resolution issued by the Council also called on all parties to the conflict to seek a sustainable resolution to the fighting through dialogue.

Sudan has been mired by fighting between the army, led by Gen. Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, who is the head of the ruling Sovereign Council, and the RSF.

At least 13,900 people have been killed and more than eight million displaced in the conflict that started in April, 2023, according to UN figures.

Several cease-fire agreements brokered by Saudi Arabia and US mediators have failed to end the violence.

*Writing by Rania Abu Shamala