GENEVA 

US-sponsored peace talks began in Geneva on Wednesday to end hostilities in Sudan going ahead without the armed forces group (SAF) agreeing to participate. 

"The RSF delegation has arrived in Switzerland. Our US delegation, the collective international partners, technical experts, and Sudanese civil society are still waiting on the SAF. The world is watching," US Special Envoy for Sudan Tom Perriello said on X.

Sudan has been mired by fighting between the army, led by Gen. Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, the head of the ruling Sovereign Council, also known as SAF, and the RSF, led by his former deputy Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo.

The situation in Sudan remains dire amid a deadly conflict that has killed nearly 18,800 people and displaced close to 10 million people since April 2023, according to UN figures.

Perriello said the "opening session with our international and technical partners representing Switzerland, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates, the African Union, and the United Nations" had begun.

"Belligerents must respect international humanitarian law and enable humanitarian assistance. It is high time for the guns to be silenced," said the US envoy.

Organizers have said the talks could last up to 10 days at an undisclosed location in Switzerland. They are not open to the public.

Saudi Arabia and Switzerland are co-hosts, while the African Union, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates, and the United Nations are acting as steering groups.

Perriello noted on X: "I'm excited to welcome my friend and partner Dr. Mohamed Ibn Chambas, Chair of the @_AfricanUnion High-Level Panel for Sudan, to these important diplomatic talks on Sudan.

"We share a deep sense of urgency to make progress this week towards a cessation of hostilities and expanded humanitarian access, as well as mechanisms to monitor and enforce new agreements."

The day before the talks kicked off, James Elder, the spokesperson for UNICEF, the UN children's agency, said the African country's humanitarian crisis is, by numbers, the biggest in the world for children.

"Five million children have been forced to flee their homes – a staggering average of 10,000 girls and boys displaced every single day – making Sudan the world's largest child displacement crisis," said Elder.