Clashes between Sudanese Army, RSF Renew in Khartoum

Flames of fire and plumes of smoke rise in central Khartoum after the renewal of fighting. (AFP)
Flames of fire and plumes of smoke rise in central Khartoum after the renewal of fighting. (AFP)
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Clashes between Sudanese Army, RSF Renew in Khartoum

Flames of fire and plumes of smoke rise in central Khartoum after the renewal of fighting. (AFP)
Flames of fire and plumes of smoke rise in central Khartoum after the renewal of fighting. (AFP)

Clashes between Sudan’s Armed Forces (SAF) and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) intensified on Saturday following artillery shelling on several areas in the capital, Khartoum.

Eyewitnesses reported strong blasts that resulted in the rise of smoke, due to the intensive shelling of the residential areas in Burri.

Local sources revealed that Omdurman's southern areas were targeted by artillery shelling by both parties.

Local committees in the Beit al-Mal area – an old town in Omdurman – said several residents were injured in the unrest, urging the Sudanese army to stop aerial strikes immediately.

They said the raids are causing more human and material losses than the RSF.

Meanwhile, the RSF accused the army of obstructing the delivery of aid to those in need.

“The SAF's active interference in the transport of humanitarian aid to areas under the protection of the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) stands in direct violation of the commitments mutually established earlier this month. These commitments were explicitly designed to ensure the rapid and unhindered transit of humanitarian support,” the RSF said Saturday in a post on X.

“Additionally, we must draw attention to the impediments faced by international organizations operating in RSF-safeguarded regions. These include deliberate delays in the issuance of staff visas and barriers in the transportation of crucial medical supplies to healthcare facilities, adversely impacting organizations such as Medecins Sans Frontieres and the Emergency Italian Organization,” added the post.

“In the strongest terms, we condemn the actions undertaken by the SAF and call upon the international community and all relevant international organizations to voice their denunciation of these acts, which purposefully deprive innocent civilians of their essential human rights.”

“In response to these flagrant violations of humanitarian ethics, we will adopt a resolute stance. We will not remain passive in the face of such egregious conduct.”

The warring parties agreed at the second round of Jeddah Talks on November 7 on arrangements to facilitate humanitarian aid delivery and procedures to build trust. The talks were brokered by Saudi Arabia, the US, and representatives from the African Union and the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD).

The commitments include participation in a joint humanitarian forum led by the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs to resolve impediments to humanitarian access and deliveries of assistance.

Obligations also included the establishment of communication between SAF and RSF leaders, arrest of escaped prisoners and fugitives, and easing of inflammatory rhetoric.



Lebanon’s President Reveals the Country’s Stance on Relations with Israel

 Lebanese President Joseph Aoun looks on during a meeting with Cyprus' President Nikos Christodoulides at the Presidential Palace in the capital Nicosia, Cyprus, Wednesday, July 9, 2025. (AP)
Lebanese President Joseph Aoun looks on during a meeting with Cyprus' President Nikos Christodoulides at the Presidential Palace in the capital Nicosia, Cyprus, Wednesday, July 9, 2025. (AP)
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Lebanon’s President Reveals the Country’s Stance on Relations with Israel

 Lebanese President Joseph Aoun looks on during a meeting with Cyprus' President Nikos Christodoulides at the Presidential Palace in the capital Nicosia, Cyprus, Wednesday, July 9, 2025. (AP)
Lebanese President Joseph Aoun looks on during a meeting with Cyprus' President Nikos Christodoulides at the Presidential Palace in the capital Nicosia, Cyprus, Wednesday, July 9, 2025. (AP)

Lebanon has no plans to have normal relations with Israel at the present time, and Beirut’s main aim is to reach a “state of no war” with its southern neighbor, the country’s president said Friday.

President Joseph Aoun’s comments came as the Trump administration is trying to expand the Abraham Accords signed in 2020 in which Israel signed historic pacts with United Arab Emirates and Bahrain.

In May, Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa said during a visit to France that his country is holding indirect talks with Israel to prevent military activities along their border from going out of control. Talks about peace between Israel and Syria have increased following the ouster of President Bashar al-Assad from power in December.

Aoun added in comments released by his office that only the Lebanese state will have weapons in the future, and the decision on whether Lebanon would go to war or not would be for the Lebanese government.

Aoun’s comments were an apparent reference to the armed Hezbollah group that fought a 14-month war with Israel, during which it suffered major blows including the killing of some of its top political and military commanders.

Hezbollah says it has ended its armed presence near the border with Israel, but is refusing to disarm in the rest of Lebanon before Israel withdraws from five overlooking border points and ends its almost daily airstrikes on Lebanon.

Earlier this week, US envoy Tom Barrack met with Lebanese leaders in Beirut, saying he was satisfied with the Lebanese government’s response to a proposal to disarm Hezbollah.

Hezbollah’s weapons have been one of the principal sticking points since Israel withdrew from southern Lebanon in 2000. Since then, Hezbollah fought two wars with Israel, one in 2006, and the other starting a day after the Hamas-led attack on southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, which triggered the war in Gaza.

The Hezbollah-Israel war, which ended with a US-brokered ceasefire in November, left more than 4,000 people dead in Lebanon and caused destruction estimated at $11 billion. In Israel, 127 people, including 80 soldiers, were killed during the war.

“Peace is the state of no war and this is what is important for us in Lebanon at the present time,” Aoun was quoted as telling visitors on Friday. He added that “the matter of normalization (with Israel) is not included in Lebanon’s current foreign policy.”

Lebanon and Israel have been at a state of war since 1948.