Heavy Fighting in Khartoum as Power Struggle Rages

In this photo provided by Maheen S, smoke fills the sky in Khartoum, Sudan, near Doha International Hospital on Friday, April 21, 2023. (Maheen S via AP)
In this photo provided by Maheen S, smoke fills the sky in Khartoum, Sudan, near Doha International Hospital on Friday, April 21, 2023. (Maheen S via AP)
TT
20

Heavy Fighting in Khartoum as Power Struggle Rages

In this photo provided by Maheen S, smoke fills the sky in Khartoum, Sudan, near Doha International Hospital on Friday, April 21, 2023. (Maheen S via AP)
In this photo provided by Maheen S, smoke fills the sky in Khartoum, Sudan, near Doha International Hospital on Friday, April 21, 2023. (Maheen S via AP)

Fierce fighting could be heard in central Khartoum on Thursday as the army tried to push back the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) from areas around the presidential palace and army headquarters, with a lasting ceasefire appearing elusive.

Each side appears to be battling for control of territory in the capital ahead of any possible negotiation, though the leaders of both factions have shown little public willingness to hold talks after more than two weeks of fighting, Reuters said.

Heavy bombardments also rang out in the adjoining cities of Omdurman and Bahri.

The United Nations, meanwhile, pressed Sudan's warring factions on Wednesday to guarantee safe passage of humanitarian aid after six trucks were looted and air strikes in the capital undermined a supposed truce.

UN aid chief Martin Griffiths said he hoped to have face-to-face meetings with Sudan's warring parties within two to three days to secure guarantees from them for aid convoys to deliver relief supplies.

HUMANITARIAN DISASTER

The United Nations has warned that fighting between the army and RSF, which erupted on April 15, risks causing a humanitarian catastrophe that could spill into other countries. Sudan said on Tuesday that 550 people had died and 4,926 people wounded so far in the conflict.

About 100,000 people have fled Sudan with little food or water to neighboring countries, the UN says.

The army and RSF joined forces in a coup two years ago and had shared power as part of an internationally backed transition towards free elections and civilian government before falling out over the transition.

The RSF accused the army of breaching a ceasefire and attacking forces since dawn. It accused the army of attacking its residential neighborhoods with artillery and aircraft in a "cowardly manner".

The envoy of Sudan's military leader said on Wednesday that the army "accepted the Saudi-American initiative for truce talks, not mediation to end the fighting" with the RSF.

The envoy, Dafallah Alhaj, said at a press conference in Cairo: "Our delegation will not meet with RSF face to face, communication will be through mediators."



Far-Right Israeli Minister Ben-Gvir Visits Jerusalem’s Al-Aqsa Mosque Compound

 Palestinians attend Eid al-Fitr holiday celebrations by the Dome of the Rock shrine in the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound in Jerusalem's Old City, Sunday, March 30, 2025. (AP)
Palestinians attend Eid al-Fitr holiday celebrations by the Dome of the Rock shrine in the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound in Jerusalem's Old City, Sunday, March 30, 2025. (AP)
TT
20

Far-Right Israeli Minister Ben-Gvir Visits Jerusalem’s Al-Aqsa Mosque Compound

 Palestinians attend Eid al-Fitr holiday celebrations by the Dome of the Rock shrine in the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound in Jerusalem's Old City, Sunday, March 30, 2025. (AP)
Palestinians attend Eid al-Fitr holiday celebrations by the Dome of the Rock shrine in the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound in Jerusalem's Old City, Sunday, March 30, 2025. (AP)

Israel’s far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir visited the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound in Jerusalem’s Old City on Wednesday, his spokesperson said, prompting strong condemnation from Jordan and Palestinian group Hamas.

The firebrand politician was visiting the site, which is sacred to Jews and Muslims, in occupied east Jerusalem after returning to the Israeli government last month following the resumption of the war against Hamas in Gaza.

Ben-Gvir had quit the cabinet in January in protest at the ceasefire agreement in the Palestinian territory.

Since the formation of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government at the end of 2022, Ben-Gvir has made several trips to the Al-Aqsa compound, each time triggering international outcry.

In a statement, the Jordanian Foreign Ministry condemned Wednesday’s visit as a “storming” and “an unacceptable provocation.”

Hamas called it a “provocative and dangerous escalation,” saying the visit was “part of the ongoing genocide against our Palestinian people.”

“We call on our Palestinian people and our youth in the West Bank to escalate their confrontation... in defense of our land and our sanctities, foremost among them the blessed Al-Aqsa Mosque,” it said in a statement.

The site is Islam’s third-holiest and a symbol of Palestinian national identity.

Known to Jews as the Temple Mount, it is also Judaism’s holiest place, revered as the site of the second temple destroyed by the Romans in 70 AD.

Under the status quo maintained by Israel, which has occupied east Jerusalem and its Old City since 1967, Jews and other non-Muslims are allowed to visit the compound during specified hours, but they are not permitted to pray there or display religious symbols.

Ben-Gvir’s spokesperson told AFP the minister “went there because the site was opened (for non-Muslims) after 13 days,” during which access was reserved for Muslims for the festival of Eid al-Fitr and the end of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan.

In recent years, growing numbers of Jewish ultranationalists have defied the rules, including Ben-Gvir, who publicly prayed there in 2023 and 2024.

The Israeli government has said repeatedly that it intends to uphold the status quo at the compound but Palestinian fears about its future have made it a flashpoint for violence.