Cairo - New York: Europe and the Arabs
International contacts continue to discuss developments in the situation in Sudan. In Cairo, it was announced that the Secretary-General of the League of Arab States, Ahmed Aboul Gheit, will meet today, Thursday, with the Secretary-General of the United Nations, Antonio Guterres, the head of the African Commission, Moussa Faki, and the High Representative for Foreign Policy of the European Union, Josep Borrell, to discuss developments in Sudan.
Aboul Gheit said on his Twitter account that the meeting comes in light of coordinated international and regional action to deliver clear messages of the need to stop the war in Sudan immediately.
In New York, it was announced that Secretary-General Antonio Guterres will participate in a meeting today, Thursday, that includes the President of the African Union, the Secretary-General of the League of Arab States, the Executive Secretary of the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) and other relevant organizations to discuss the situation in Sudan.
United Nations spokesman Stephane Dujarric said that the Secretary-General spoke earlier "Wednesday" with Kenyan President William Ruto and African Union Commission Chairperson Musa Faki Mahamat about developments in Sudan in light of the outbreak of fighting between the army and the Rapid Support Forces.
Dujarric said the Secretary-General will continue to be engaged to try to secure a 24-hour ceasefire, which will enable all affected civilians in Khartoum to have much-needed respite.
On the ground, the Representative of the Secretary-General in Sudan, Volker Peretz, continues to engage with the parties, key Sudanese leaders and member states in an effort to secure an immediate cessation of hostilities, and is working in coordination with the Secretary-General on securing a 24-hour ceasefire.
Earlier, a press statement issued by the United Nations Mission in Sudan stated that the tripartite mechanism (the African Union - IGAD - the United Nations) was informed of the commitment of the Sudanese Armed Forces and the Rapid Support Forces to implement a 24-hour ceasefire.
The tripartite mechanism called on all parties to create the necessary conditions during this period for civilians to seek safe shelter, food and medical care.
"The tripartite mechanism continues to emphasize the need for an immediate and lasting cessation of hostilities to spare innocent civilians in Sudan any further acts of violence, and will continue to work towards this in coordination with Sudanese stakeholders, the Quartet, and the European Union," the statement said.