Saudi Arabia and the U.S., who have been brokering talks in a joint statement, said Sudan’s warring sides have agreed on a nationwide ceasefire for 24 hours from 6:00 a.m. (0400 GMT) on Saturday.

Sudan’s army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) agreed “they will refrain from prohibited movements, attacks, use of aircraft or drones, aerial bombardment, artillery strikes, reinforcement of positions and resupply of forces.

“They will also refrain from seeking military advantage during the ceasefire,” the statement read.

If the parties failed to observe the ceasefire, “facilitators will be compelled to consider adjourning the Jeddah talks”, the U.S. and Saudi joint statement added, referring to negotiations to try to end almost two months of clashes in Sudan.

“We have provided both parties numerous opportunities to end this senseless war,” the U.S. State Department’s Bureau of African Affairs said on Twitter.

“We call on both sides to adhere to the commitment made today for a 24-hour ceasefire, which would allow Sudanese people to receive critical humanitarian assistance.”

Both sides had broken a string of ceasefire agreements, though a recent truce deal let in limited amounts of humanitarian aid, humanitarian agencies said.

The conflict in Sudan derailed the launch of a transition toward civilian rule four years after a popular uprising ousted strongman President Omar al-Bashir.

Sudan’s army and the RSF fell over the chain of command and military restructuring plans during the transition.

(Reuters/NAN)