Sudan unrest: Iran urges restraint, dialogue to end fighting

Iran has expressed its concern over the ongoing violence in Sudan, urging the opposing sides to show restraint and engage in dialogue to end the unrest in the country.

"The Islamic Republic of Iran expresses its concern over what is taking place in the Muslim and brotherly country of Sudan," Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Nasser Kan'ani said on Saturday.

He urged Sudan to overcome the current worrying situation through diologue. 

The Iranian spokesperson expressed confidence that the Sudanese-Sudanese dialogue and internal consensus on a national initiative are the sole solution to the current crisis.

Fierce exchanges of gunfire as well as massive explosions hit the Sudanese capital of Khartoum on Saturday as columns of smoke bellowed from various places and soldiers were deployed on the streets.

The clashes came following days of tensions between the army and the powerful paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) that threatened to turn into a full-blown battle for control of the African country. 

Sudan paramilitaries say in control of presidential palace, other centers

Sudan

Sudan's paramilitaries said they are in control of several key sites, including the presidential palace in central Khartoum.

Saudi Arabia, UAE call for dialogue

Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates also on Saturday called for dialogue in Sudan to end the ongoing clashes.

"Saudi Arabia voices its deep concern regarding the escalation and clashes between the army and the RSF in Sudan," the Saudi Foreign Ministry said in a statement. It underscored the need for Sudan to exercise restraint.

Meanwhile, the UAE called for de-escalation and restraint as well as working to resolve the current crisis in the African country via dialogue, state news agency WAM reported.

EU, Arab League, African Union Commission call for end to violence

European Union's foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said on Monday that he was following events in Sudan with concern. "Following with utmost concern ongoing events in #Sudan. The EU calls on all stakeholders and regional partners to put back on track the transition process," Borrell wrote on his Twitter account.

Secretary-General of the Arab League Ahmed Aboul Gheit also voiced concern regarding the current developments in Sudan. He also called on both parties to return to negotiations to settle their dispute.

The African Union called on everyone involved to cease fire and find a political solution. "The African Union has been following closely and with great concern the developments in the Republic of Sudan and urging, directly and indirectly, the political and military parties to find a fair political solution to the crisis that arose after the October 25, 2021 coup and its disastrous consequences," the AU Commission’s Chairperson Moussa Faki Mahamat said in a statement uploaded to the AU portal on Saturday.

The Special Representative of the Secretary General for Sudan and Head of the United Nations Integrated Transition Assistance Mission in Sudan (UNITAMS), Volker Perthes, condemned the eruption of fighting in Sudan. Perthes called for "an immediate cessation of fighting to ensure the safety of the Sudanese people and to spare the country from further violence."

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