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Sudan is roiling from a third day of violence that’s killed nearly 100 civilians and injured hundreds more since Saturday, as rival leaders of Sudan’s military government battle for control of the northeast African nation. There are reports of heavy artillery fire in the capital Khartoum, explosions at Khartoum’s main airport, and airstrikes on military barracks and bases in cities and regions across Sudan.
The violence pits two factions of Sudan’s military establishment against one another. One is led by General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, who’s been the de facto leader of Sudan since the overthrow of longtime ruler Omar al-Bashir in April 2019. The other faction is led by Lieutenant General Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, known as “Hemedti,” the former commander of the janjaweed militias responsible for murders, rapes and torture in Sudan’s Darfur region. The World Food Programme has halted all operations in Sudan after three of its employees were killed and a U.N. humanitarian aircraft was damaged at Khartoum’s main airport.
The United Nations, the African Union, the United States, Russia and China are all calling for a ceasefire in Sudan. The African Union’s Peace and Security Council also warned against external interference in Sudan. The fighting has dashed hopes of a civilian-led, democratically elected government, a key demand of protesters who led the mass mobilizations in 2019 that led to al-Bashir’s ouster. After headlines, we’ll go to Khartoum for the latest.