As Eid al-Adha celebrations were unlike any other for the people in Sudan who have suffered from the war for more than 70 days, a 24-hour ceasefire agreed upon in Sudan has been broken.
Early on Wednesday, residents of the capital Khartoum reported hearing a lot of shooting, as well as artillery and air raids by the Sudanese army targeting positions of the Rapid Support Forces (RSF).
The sides to the disagreement have put off their negotiations for the time being.
Hiba Morgan of Al Jazeera said there was little sense that it was Eid, a Muslim holy festival, and few people were out on the streets in Omdurman, a city across the Nile from Khartoum.
Many are concerned that the 17th truce since the crisis began on April 15 will not ensure their safety due to past ceasefire violations.
On Tuesday for Eid, the leaders of the RSF and the army each made a unilateral truce announcement.
According to Morgan, “a ceasefire has very little meaning because, again, this Eid al-Adha [the Sudanese] can’t really celebrate,” adding that the peaceful ambiance of Eid has been replaced with people’s anguish over losing loved ones or being forced to flee because of the fighting.
Many people lack the financial resources to enjoy the holiday.
After the suffering they have endured, thousands of people who are escaping the fighting and waiting along the border with Egypt or who have been displaced from Darfur’s western region into the neighboring country of Chad are not enjoying the event.
At least 2,000 civilians have died in the violence in Sudan, and many more have been injured.
According to the International Organization for Migration (IOM), more than 600,000 people have fled to nearby countries, leaving nearly 2 million people internally displaced.
Fighting has been worse in recent weeks as a result of the failure of peace talks mediated by the US and Saudi Arabia.
