Pakistan’s embassy in Sudan’s capital, Khartoum, was attacked on Wednesday as five days of fighting between the army and paramilitary forces show no signs of abating.
In a statement, the embassy said: “Today, the Embassy of Pakistan was hit by three bullets amid clashes between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the Rapid Support Forces, which damaged the Chancery building.”
The statement said the incident was a clear violation of the Vienna Convention as the host government is responsible for providing security to diplomatic missions.
“We urge both sides to exercise restraint and request the government of Sudan to immediately deploy security personnel to protect and protect the Pakistani embassy,” the statement said.
The embassy once again advised all Pakistanis to stay at home and avoid unnecessary travel due to the deteriorating security situation. There are about a thousand Pakistanis in Khartoum.
Thousands of residents fled the Sudanese capital, where witnesses reported bodies littering the streets after fighting between the army and paramilitary forces killed more than 270 civilians, according to embassies.
The paramilitary Rapid Support Forces said they would “commit to a full ceasefire” for 24 hours from 1600 GMT, as did the army.
But at the appointed time, gunshots were heard throughout Khartoum, according to eyewitnesses.
It was the second day in a row that a proposed humanitarian ceasefire was thwarted, with both the army and the RSF accusing each other of breaking the South Sudan-brokered ceasefire on Tuesday.
Foreign diplomats have been attacked, and UN emergency aid coordinator Martin Griffiths said the UN had received “reports of assaults and sexual violence against aid workers”.
Governments began planning to evacuate their own citizens, including many UN staff.
Violence erupted on Saturday between the forces of the two generals who seized power in a 2021 coup: army chief Abdul Fattah al-Barhan and his deputy, Mohammad Hamdan Daglu, who commands the RSF.
This followed a bitter dispute between them over the planned integration of the RSF into the regular army – a key condition for a final deal to restore Sudan’s democratic transition.
Heavy gunfire and deafening explosions shook buildings in Khartoum – a city of five million people.
RSF fighters took to the streets in armored vehicles and pick-up trucks loaded with weapons. Eyewitnesses said fighter jets roared overhead and opened fire on RSF targets.
The fighting has damaged residential and commercial buildings, and civilians sheltering in their homes are becoming increasingly desperate, with dwindling food supplies, power outages and a lack of running water.
