Blinken says Sudan rivals agree to 72-hour ceasefire
In a statement two hours before the truce was to go into effect, Blinken said intense negotiations led to the two warring generals agreeing to implement a nationwide 72-hour ceasefire starting on April 25.
WASHINGTON, United States - US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said that Sudan's warring generals had agreed to a three-day ceasefire starting Tuesday (2200 GMT Monday), after previous bids to pause the conflict quickly disintegrated.
"Following intense negotiation over the past 48 hours, the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) have agreed to implement a nationwide ceasefire starting at midnight on April 24, to last for 72 hours," Blinken said in a statement two hours before the truce was to go into effect.
"During this period, the United States urges the SAF and RSF to immediately and fully uphold the ceasefire," Blinken said.
Blinken said that the United States was also working with partners to set up a committee that would negotiate a permanent ceasefire in Sudan, where the conflict between rival generals descended into deadly violence 10 days ago.
Blinken met earlier Monday in Washington on the peace efforts with Kenya's top diplomat and has held phone conversations with counterparts from Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.
