10,000 to 20,000 people fled to Chad, says UN

The refugees number in the thousands. Between 10,000 and 20,000 people have fled the ongoing fighting in Sudan to find refuge in neighboring Chad, according to teams from the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) present at the border. “The majority of people arriving are women and children”he said in a statement Thursday, April 20.

Since the power struggle, latent for weeks between two generals, turned into a pitched battle on April 15, the confusion has been total for the 45 million Sudanese. UNHCR says “very concerned about the escalation of violence in Sudan” while the World Health Organization (WHO) has counted “more than 330 dead and 3,200 injured”.

There will be “no more political discussions”, says one of the generals

The UN Secretary General called for a ceasefire on Thursday.“at least three days” in Sudan on the occasion of the Eid al-Fitr celebrations, which mark the end of the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan. “This must be the first step to allow a respite from the fighting and pave the way for a permanent ceasefire,” added Antonio Guterres.

One of the two generals who clash, army chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhane, told Al Jazeera on Thursday that there would be no “no more political discussions” with his declared enemy. He urged his rival Mohamed Hamdane Daglo, known as “Hemedti”, at the head of the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (FSR), to stop “wanting to control the country”otherwise “he will be crushed militarily”.