Tense calm returned to Nyala, the capital of Sudan’s South Darfur State, after days of fighting that led to the capture of the city by the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) last Thursday.
There were no sounds of gunfire across the city, which has been deserted as residents had either fled or went into hiding to avoid being caught in the crossfire.
The relative calm comes after the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) reconvened humanitarian and ceasefire talks in Saudi Arabia.
Speaking to Radio Tamazuj on Sunday, residents across the restive city who had remained indoors confirmed tense calm returned to Nyala.
“Nyala is calm now although tense and the market has reopened. We hope that security for all residents will prevail,” said Abdallah Mohamed Abdallah, a livestock trader in Nyala.
Meanwhile, Mohammed Saboun Hamoda, a teacher at the State Ministry of Education and Instruction, said he had not left his home at the Airport neighborhood since the beginning of the war until the fall of the army division to the RSF last week.
“The situation is now calm and I left all my doors open yesterday night. The security situation is calm and there is no problem. We pray to God that the security will be maintained,” said Hamoda.
Hassan Ismail Adam, another resident of Nyala, said that the situation is stable and the streets are witnessing some activity. “I can now say the security situation is stable. The past few days, I could not sleep at all but now things are good and the market is reopening,” said Ismail.
The war between Sudan’s military and the paramilitary group has entered its seventh month, causing days and nights of terror, loss and trauma for much of the country’s population.
An estimated 9,000 people have been killed and another 5.6 million forced to flee their homes during the conflict, according to the United Nations.
“Half a year of war has plunged Sudan into one of the worst humanitarian nightmares in recent history,” U.N. Undersecretary-General Martin Griffiths said in a recent statement.