Sudan fighting in its 25th day: A list of key events

By William On May 9, 2023

Airstrikes shake Khartoum as ceasefire talks stall in Saudi Arabia.

This is the situation on Tuesday, May 9, 2023:

To fight

Air strikes again shook Sudan’s capital, Khartoum, on Monday, while the latest ceasefire talks in Jeddah yielded no progress, and a Saudi diplomat said both sides consider themselves “capable of winning the battle”.
Army chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan said on Monday that the army was looking for a peaceful solution, but that a lasting settlement could only be discussed with the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) “after we have signed a permanent ceasefire in have reached Khartoum”.

Thousands of people are trying to leave Port Sudan on boats to Saudi Arabia, paying for expensive commercial flights through Sudan’s only functioning airport, or using evacuation flights.
Rooms in Port Sudan cost as much as $100 a night, too much for many of the refugees who are forced to sleep in public parks, under trees and outside government buildings.
Sudanese Red Crescent Clinics in Port Sudan see about 400 cases a day, mostly Syrians and Yemenis, said volunteer doctor Rawan Abdelrahman. They are short of medicines, supplies and personnel, she added.
The IRC said “334,000 have been displaced within Sudan itself, of which nearly 65,000 are estimated to have crossed the border as refugees”.

There is no word on the progress of talks, which began Saturday between the military and the RSF in the Saudi Red Sea city of Jeddah.
The fighters have said they would only try to address a ceasefire and humanitarian issues such as safe passage.
While not commenting directly on the talks in Jeddah, U.S. Ambassador John Godfrey said, “Our first priority is to achieve a lasting ceasefire” and enable humanitarian aid.
UN aid chief Martin Griffiths is in Jeddah for talks on humanitarian issues but has no direct contact with any of the warring factions, his spokesman said.
The African Union – which Sudan suspended following a 2021 coup – and the East African regional bloc IGAD are pushing for talks brokered by South Sudanese President Salva Kiir.