US Says Will Continue to Support a Civilian Government in Sudan

Sudanese army touring a Khartoum neighborhood (AFP)
Sudanese army touring a Khartoum neighborhood (AFP)
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US Says Will Continue to Support a Civilian Government in Sudan

Sudanese army touring a Khartoum neighborhood (AFP)
Sudanese army touring a Khartoum neighborhood (AFP)

The United States affirmed its support of the Sudanese people's demand for a civilian government and the resumption of Sudan's disrupted democratic transition.

Washington warned that the ongoing fighting between the Sudanese Armed Forces and Rapid Support Forces (RSF) threatened the people of Sudan with the prospect of a protracted conflict and widespread suffering.

The US Embassy in Khartoum issued a statement asserting that Washington will continue to hold the belligerent parties accountable for their unconscionable violence and blatant disregard for the will of the Sudanese people.

The statement added that every day hostilities continue, the parties hinder the delivery of humanitarian assistance to those who need it most, destroy key infrastructure, and deny the aspirations of the Sudanese people for freedom, peace, and justice.

Meanwhile, violent clashes erupted in Khartoum as people commemorated the fourth anniversary of the forceful dispersal of the sit-in on June 3, 2019, during which the army general command killed hundreds and injured thousands of others.

It marks the second day in a row of clashes with heavy weapons, after the collapse of the Jeddah cease-fire agreement signed by the two warring parties, with Saudi-US mediation, amid the deterioration of the humanitarian situation and the increasing number of displaced people.

Clashes renewed in the old Omdurman and south of Khartoum, and explosions were heard in the cities and around vital and strategic locations.

 

 

 

Residents of Khartoum reported that the army's warplanes had bombed areas in the south of Khartoum, and the RSF units responded using ground anti-aircraft missiles.

 

 

 

Meanwhile, the Sudanese Red Crescent announced the burial of 180 unidentified persons after the bodies piled up in the streets and people's inability to go out to bury them.

 

 



Israel Targets Suspected Arms Smuggler in Airstrike Near Beirut

Lebanese soldiers inspect the site of an Israeli strike on a vehicle south of Beirut (AFP)
Lebanese soldiers inspect the site of an Israeli strike on a vehicle south of Beirut (AFP)
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Israel Targets Suspected Arms Smuggler in Airstrike Near Beirut

Lebanese soldiers inspect the site of an Israeli strike on a vehicle south of Beirut (AFP)
Lebanese soldiers inspect the site of an Israeli strike on a vehicle south of Beirut (AFP)

An Israeli airstrike killed a suspected arms smuggler south of Beirut on Thursday, in a sharp escalation in Lebanon that coincided with internal talks over Hezbollah’s disarmament in line with US demands, Lebanese officials said.

The strike targeted a vehicle on the coastal highway in the Khalde area, just south of the Lebanese capital, according to the state-run National News Agency. Social media footage showed a missile hitting a car, which came to a halt before a second strike hit the driver as he attempted to flee.

Lebanon’s Health Ministry confirmed one person was killed and three others wounded in the attack.

The Israeli military said the strike eliminated an operative working on behalf of Iran’s Quds Force, accusing him of trafficking weapons and planning attacks against Israeli civilians and military forces.

Israel’s Army Radio reported that the individual was affiliated with Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).

The strike comes amid rising tensions along the Israel-Lebanon border and as Lebanese factions discuss the future of Hezbollah’s weapons amid pressure from Washington to curtail the group’s military power.

Thursday’s airstrike was one of the few Israeli attacks in or near Beirut since the truce with Hezbollah took effect in November.

Only two other strikes have been recorded in the area over the past eight months, including one on Eid al-Fitr that killed a senior Hezbollah figure allegedly linked to coordination with Hamas in the group’s southern Beirut stronghold.

Another strike in Naameh, south of the capital, targeted and killed a senior official from the Islamic Group, a Sunni faction with ties to southern Lebanon’s Hasbaya region.

The latest escalation comes as Lebanese leaders prepare a unified response to a US-backed proposal calling for Hezbollah to disarm and place all weapons under state control.

Despite the ceasefire, Israel has maintained positions in southern Lebanon beyond the agreed February withdrawal deadline and continues to carry out airstrikes across southern and eastern Lebanon, following more than a year of cross-border hostilities with Hezbollah.