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Saudi, US Mediators Announce 24-Hour Sudan Truce

Black smoke billows amid ongoing fighting in the capital Khartoum on June 9, 2023. (AFP)
Black smoke billows amid ongoing fighting in the capital Khartoum on June 9, 2023. (AFP)
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Saudi, US Mediators Announce 24-Hour Sudan Truce

Black smoke billows amid ongoing fighting in the capital Khartoum on June 9, 2023. (AFP)
Black smoke billows amid ongoing fighting in the capital Khartoum on June 9, 2023. (AFP)

Sudan's warring generals have agreed to a 24-hour ceasefire from Saturday, Saudi and US mediators said, acknowledging that previous attempts to pause a conflict now nearing its third month had proved abortive.

Multiple truces have been agreed and broken since fighting erupted on April 15, and Washington had slapped sanctions on both rival generals after the last attempt collapsed at the end of May, blaming them for the "appalling" bloodshed.

"Representatives of the Sudanese Armed Forces and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) agreed to a 24-hour countrywide ceasefire beginning on June 10 at 6:00 am (0400 GMT)," said a joint statement from the mediators released by the Saudi foreign ministry on Friday.

"Should the parties fail to observe the 24-hour ceasefire, facilitators will be compelled to consider adjourning" talks in the Saudi city of Jeddah which have been suspended since late last month, the mediators said.

The fighting has gripped the capital Khartoum and the western region of Darfur, killing upwards of 1,800 people, according to the Armed Conflict Location and Event Data Project.

Nearly two million people have been displaced, including 476,000 who have sought refuge in neighboring countries, the United Nations says.

The Saudi and US mediators said they "share the frustration of the Sudanese people about the uneven implementation of previous ceasefires".

The army, led by Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, said it has "agreed to the proposal", adding in a statement it "declares its commitment to the ceasefire".

The paramilitary RSF, commanded by Burhan's former deputy Mohamed Hamdan Daglo, has yet to make an official statement on the latest truce.

"If observed, the 24-hour ceasefire will provide an important opportunity... for the parties to undertake confidence-building measures which could permit resumption of the Jeddah talks," the US-Saudi statement said.

'Immense needs'

Friday's announcement came a day after US Secretary of State Antony Blinken wrapped up a three-day visit to Saudi Arabia, where he held discussions on Sudan with top Saudi officials.

On Thursday, Sudanese authorities loyal to Burhan declared UN envoy Volker Perthes "persona non grata", accusing him of taking sides.

The fighting has sidelined the envoy's efforts to revive Sudan's transition to civilian rule, which was derailed by a 2021 coup by the two generals before they fell out.

A Sudanese government official who spoke to AFP on condition of anonymity said the decision was taken "because he sided with certain political parties" and sought to "exclude others" from the transition process.

The United Nations has yet to comment on the announcement but UN chief Antonio Guterres has repeatedly defended Perthes, who is currently in the Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa for a series of talks.

A former academic who has headed the Sudan mission since 2021, Perthes has staunchly defended the UN against accusations of inflaming the conflict, saying those responsible are "the two generals at war".

The fighting has complicated the coordination of international efforts to deliver emergency relief to the 25 million civilians that the United Nations estimates are in need.

Alfonso Verdu Perez, outgoing head of the International Committee of the Red Cross delegation in Sudan, warned on Friday that "health care may collapse at any moment".

"The needs are immense and much more remains to be done" in both Khartoum and Darfur, he told reporters in Geneva, describing the many challenges to delivering aid as fighting continues.

About one fifth of medical facilities in the capital are still functioning but face "severe shortages" of water, food and electricity, and "are running low on essential medical supplies", he added.

Witnesses reported hearing clashes on Friday near the Yarmouk weapons manufacturing and arms depot complex in Khartoum, from where plumes of smoke were seen rising for a second successive day.

Air strikes were also carried out in eastern parts of the capital and the sound of anti-aircraft guns was heard.

Those unable to leave have been forced to camp out for weeks as supplies of food and other vital goods run low.

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Arab World

Netanyahu Says Spoke with Syria’s Sharaa on Sweida Unrest

People walk under a giant election billboard bearing a portrait of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's Likud party in Ramat Gan, on October 15, 2026. (AFP)
People walk under a giant election billboard bearing a portrait of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's Likud party in Ramat Gan, on October 15, 2026. (AFP)
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Netanyahu Says Spoke with Syria’s Sharaa on Sweida Unrest

People walk under a giant election billboard bearing a portrait of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's Likud party in Ramat Gan, on October 15, 2026. (AFP)
People walk under a giant election billboard bearing a portrait of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's Likud party in Ramat Gan, on October 15, 2026. (AFP)

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Thursday that he had previously spoken with Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa about violence towards the Druze community, in his first acknowledgement of direct contact.

Netanyahu did not say when exactly the call took place, but implied it had been during bloody clashes in southern Syria in July of 2025 involving Druze factions, Bedouin fighters and government security forces.

"I called al-Sharaa. It was a very short, very sharp conversation, and the slaughter stopped," Netanyahu said at an election rally with Israel's Druze community, according to footage aired by Israel's public broadcaster KAN.

The 2025 clashes erupted in Syria's Sweida province between armed Druze factions and Bedouin fighters, with government security forces and some tribal groups then intervening.

A committee set up by the Syrian government said it had documented 1,760 deaths.

Israel, which also has a Druze population, intervened militarily during the clashes, with strikes in Sweida and against government targets in Damascus, saying it was defending the minority community.

Government-aligned forces later withdrew from Sweida city, leaving a fragile ceasefire in place, and in July of this year Damascus said it had begun trying suspects over the violence.

A Syrian government source told the country's state news agency SANA on Thursday that Damascus "categorically rejects any attempt to politicize (Syria's Druze minority) or to involve it in Israeli propaganda and elections," without confirming nor denying whether the call between Netanyahu and Sharaa had taken place.

Since the December 2024 ousting of longtime Syrian ruler Bashar al-Assad, Israel has carried out hundreds of strikes in Syria and sent troops into a UN-patrolled buffer zone that had separated Israeli and Syrian forces in the Golan since 1974.

It has also carried out repeated incursions deeper into Syrian territory and has vowed to keep troops in a so-called "security zone" in southern Syria, where it seeks a broader demilitarized area.

Syria's new leaders have condemned Israeli military action in the country's south but have refrained from responding with force.

Despite the tensions, Syria and Israel have held several rounds of direct talks as they edge towards a security agreement.

Arab World

Iraq Parliament Fills Cabinet Posts, Naming a US-Sanctioned Deputy Prime Minister

Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi attends a parliamentary session to approve the remaining members of his cabinet, in Baghdad, Iraq, October 15, 2026. (Iraqi Prime Minister's Media Office/Handout via Reuters)
Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi attends a parliamentary session to approve the remaining members of his cabinet, in Baghdad, Iraq, October 15, 2026. (Iraqi Prime Minister's Media Office/Handout via Reuters)
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Iraq Parliament Fills Cabinet Posts, Naming a US-Sanctioned Deputy Prime Minister

Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi attends a parliamentary session to approve the remaining members of his cabinet, in Baghdad, Iraq, October 15, 2026. (Iraqi Prime Minister's Media Office/Handout via Reuters)
Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi attends a parliamentary session to approve the remaining members of his cabinet, in Baghdad, Iraq, October 15, 2026. (Iraqi Prime Minister's Media Office/Handout via Reuters)

Iraq's parliament voted Thursday to appoint ministers to previously vacant Cabinet posts and complete the country's government, including a deputy prime minister who is under US sanctions.

Laith al-Khazali, appointed to that post, is the brother of Qais al-Khazali, leader of the Iran-backed Asaib Ahl al-Haq armed faction. Laith al-Khazali was arrested by US forces in 2007 over allegations related to an attack targeting American forces in Karbala in January of that year, which resulted in the deaths of five US soldiers.

He was released from US custody in June 2009. In 2019, the US Treasury Department imposed sanctions on him, citing his leadership role in Asaib Ahl al-Haq and allegations involving human rights abuses as well as the 2007 attack.

His appointment to a senior government position raises questions about its potential implications for relations between Baghdad and Washington. Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi was backed by US President Donald Trump when he took the post and has strong relations with Washington, but he has also sought to maintain relations with Iran.

Past Iraqi governments have also sought to balance relations with Washington and Tehran, but the balancing act has become more difficult since the US and Iran went to war on Feb. 28.

There was no immediate official statement from the US on the appointment.

Republican US Rep. Joe Wilson wrote on X that al Khazali “is a designated terrorist and Iranian puppet whose militia AAH killed Americans and Iraqis.”

“He is no better than ISIS, maybe even worse,” Wilson said. "It is outrageous but sadly not shocking that he has been appointed deputy PM of Iraq.”

The parliament also appointed two other deputy prime ministers, as well as a new interior minister, defense minister, planning minister, minister of higher education and scientific research, and culture minister.

The other Cabinet posts had been appointed five months earlier.

Al-Zaidi said in a statement that with the vacant posts filled, “we are embarking on a phase of accelerated, diligent work” and pledged to "move forward in implementing our government’s priorities and program, and in fulfilling the aspirations of all Iraqis.”

He said the government had worked over the past several months amid complicated domestic and international circumstances, noting that the war in the region had imposed exceptional economic challenges on Iraq, in addition to security challenges.

Al-Zaidi has vowed to fight corruption and strengthen Iraq's sovereignty, both by completing the withdrawal of US forces from the country and by disarming non-state armed groups.

Some of the most powerful factions have said they have no intention of giving up their weapons, although Asaib Ahl al-Haq is one of a handful that have agreed to hand over their arms.

Arab World

Houthis Launch Attack on Presidential Palace in Yemen’s Aden

A boat motors under Al-Maashiq Presidential Palace, at top, in Aden, Yemen, Aug. 20, 2024. (AP)
A boat motors under Al-Maashiq Presidential Palace, at top, in Aden, Yemen, Aug. 20, 2024. (AP)
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Houthis Launch Attack on Presidential Palace in Yemen’s Aden

A boat motors under Al-Maashiq Presidential Palace, at top, in Aden, Yemen, Aug. 20, 2024. (AP)
A boat motors under Al-Maashiq Presidential Palace, at top, in Aden, Yemen, Aug. 20, 2024. (AP)

At least six explosions struck Thursday near the palace used by Yemen's legitimate government in the port city of Aden, witnesses said. An official said at least two people were killed, and Iran-backed Houthi militants based in northern Yemen quickly claimed responsibility.

It was a rare attack on the palace area, as fighting has escalated between the militia and a Saudi-led coalition in the latest front in the Iran war. The explosions caused panic among residents, who fled the area.

Yemen's Ministry of Information confirmed the safety of Prime Minister Shaya Al-Zindani and ministers, saying they no longer hold permanent meetings inside the palace in anticipation of such attacks.

At least two people were killed and six wounded, said the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to the press. The government said the Houthis attacked with missiles and drones, the Aden-based SABA news agency reported.

A security official said at least two explosions were on top of the hill near the Al-Maashiq Presidential Palace, and two others were near the security gate.

Many of Yemen's government leaders are living in exile, and those in Aden were safe, a government official said. Both officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to the media. A video circulating on social media and analyzed by The Associated Press shows smoke rising from the area where the palace is located.

Chairman of the Presidential Leadership Council Dr. Rashad al-Alimi contacted ministers in wake of the attack.

Chairman of the Presidential Leadership Council Dr. Rashad al-Alimi contacted ministers in wake of the attack. (SABA)

He asserted that the Houthi attack on the palace is an extension of the militias' approach of targeting airports, oil facilities, and civilian objects in Yemen and Saudi Arabia, threatening regional security and waterways.

He stressed that the state will continue to carry out its constitutional responsibilities with utmost firmness, and that protecting its sovereign facilities and citizens is a non-negotiable responsibility.

He ordered the relevant military and security authorities to take the necessary measures to protect state institutions, counter terrorist threats, and respond appropriately to sources of threat in a manner that ensures the protection of civilians and civilian objects.

In turn, the cabinet affirmed that the attack on the Al-Maashiq Palace reveals the terrorist approach of the Houthis and their persistence in targeting civilians.

It stressed that it will not deter the government from performing its responsibilities and duties toward citizens, and continuing the battle to restore the state and its institutions and end the coup being pursued by the Dawn of Yemen Operation.

The attack on the palace is part of an escalating pattern of Houthi terrorism that has not been limited to targeting state institutions, but has extended to attacks on civilian objects and vital facilities in Saudi Arabia, and the shelling of residential neighborhoods in the governorates of Taiz and Lahj.

"The future of Yemen will not be held hostage by a militia that bears arms against its people, targets the security of its neighbors, and relies on violence to compensate for the Yemeni rejection of its coup project,” it added.

The cabinet called on the international community and the United Nations to take a clear and firm stance regarding these attacks, to stop treating them as isolated incidents separate from their context, to exert the necessary pressure to halt the targeting of civilians and civilian facilities, and to hold those responsible for the violations accountable.

Smoke billows from the presidential palace complex following an attack by Yemen's Houthis, according to government officials, in Aden, Yemen, October 15, 2026, in this screen grab obtained from a social media video. (Social media/via Reuters)

Elsewhere in Yemen, the fighting has revived a devastating civil war after four years of relative calm. One focus of alarm is the Houthi-besieged city of Taiz.

Residents of Yemen’s third-largest city are running short of basic necessities. Where goods can be found, prices have soared. Gas stations sit empty or out of service. The World Food Program said it can no longer reach more than 600,000 people in Taiz who depend on aid.

At a news conference late Thursday in Taiz, the Health Ministry said 120 people were killed and 307 wounded in the fighting through Oct. 5, with most of the deaths reported in Taiz, Saada and Jawf areas.

Fathiyya Mohamed al-Mugahed said she had gone looking for flour, cooking gas and fuel but found none.

“The Houthis have surrounded us from all sides,” she said. “Projectiles are all we have received from them.”

The International Committee of the Red Cross said Taiz has seen some of the “highest casualty burdens” in the country.