UN pushes for Sudan peace talks

Sudan’s two warring generals have agreed to send representatives to negotiate an end to the fighting, the United Nations representative in Sudan Volker Perthes said Monday. Perthes said the talks could be hosted in Saudi Arabia, but official plans for a meeting have not been established. The two military groups on Sunday agreed to extend a tenuous cease-fire for three more days to allow humanitarian efforts to continue.

Has the cease-fire been effective? The truce has been observed in some parts of the country, but both sides have continued fighting in some cities. Airstrikes hit the capital of Khartoum on Monday, and more than 500 people have been killed since fighting began on April 15. Humanitarian groups have resumed some food distribution missions—the country relied heavily on aid even before the war broke out. Thousands of people have fled Sudan and its capital.

Dig deeper: Read Onize Ohikere’s report in World Tour about how thousands have fled the violence in Sudan.