The Army of Sudan and the paramilitaries of the group Rapid Support Forces (RSF) They maintain their combats this Sunday and have spread in particular to the east of the country. According to the balance of the Central Committee of Doctors of Sudan, at least 56 civilians have died and an estimated 600 people have been injured as a result of the armed clashes that began this Saturday.
On its Facebook page, the committee warned that these figures were recorded within hospitals and health centers, so could increase considerably having affected victims in isolated regions of Sudan to which the association does not have access. He also indicated that there are civilian deaths and victims who could not reach hospitals “due to the movement difficulties Yet the interception of ambulances and paramedics“during armed clashes.
The committee broke down that the capital, Khartoum, was where the most deaths were recorded, with 25 fatalities; while in the neighbor omdurman and the region of Marine a total of 11 and 8 deaths were recorded, respectively. The clashes that took place in areas far from urban centers left at least another 25 dead between civilians and soldiers, the source said.
“We call for the predominance of the voice of reason and the immediate ceasefire absurd, which claimed the lives of innocent and unarmed civilians, and safe-conducts must be opened to evacuate the detained, stranded and injured to provide them with first aid,” said the Central Committee of Sudanese Doctors, one of the few civilian organizations trained to make these estimates, as they did in previous episodes of violence in the country.
bombing
Sudanese Army fighter planes have begun bombarding RSF positions early this Sunday. The cities closest to Khartoum, such as Omdurman and Bahri (also known as North Khartoum), are being the scene of shelling and light and heavy artillery crossings, as is also the case in the cities of Kesala and Gadarif, on the border with Eritrea and the Port Sudan, in the northeast.
Both sides have also confirmed hostilities in the city of Damazin, in the south of the country, where the military have reportedly destroyed 35 RSF vehicles, while the governor of North Darfur, a huge region that covers a large portion of the double border with Chad and Libya, it has also been able to verify clashes.
The army and paramilitaries have been announcing victories all night in different parts of the capital without any possibility of verifying their information given the chaos reigning. While the military claims that they have taken over an RSF base in the Karari district, the paramilitaries announced this morning on their Twitter account the downing of a Sukhoi military plane that had been bombing their positions in the city for the last few hours.
UN petition
He United Nations Security Council This morning it has demanded that the Army and the paramilitaries put an immediate end to the hostilities and return to the civil transition process that they were one step away from signing at the beginning of the month and that right now has completely collapsed.
“The members of the Security Council express their deep concern for the clashes between the Armed Forces and the Rapid Support Forces, as well as their regret for the loss of life, including those of civilians,” according to a statement published by the US ambassador to Sudan, John Godfrey, on his Twitter account. Twitter.
— John Godfrey (@USAMBSudan) April 16, 2023
Likewise, the Security Council has called on the factions to keep access routes open for humanitarian aid and guarantee the safety of their personnel. “The members of the Security Council reaffirm their firm commitment to the unity, sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity of the Republic of Sudan,” the note concludes.
“Dangerous Juncture”
The determining point of the conflict between the rival military after weeks of tension occurred yesterday when the FAR accused the Sudanese Army of launching an action against one of its bases in Khartoum, while the Armed Forces assured that they carried it out in response to an attack that the FAR had previously carried out in the Sudanese capital.
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These clashes occurred just two days after the Army warned that the country is going through a “dangerous situation” that could lead to armed conflict, after FAR units “mobilized” in the Sudanese capital and other cities. without the consent or coordination of the Armed Forces.
This mobilization occurred in the midst of negotiations to reach a definitive political agreement that would put an end to the 2021 coup and lead Sudan to a democratic transition, a pact whose signing has been postponed twice this April precisely because of the tensions and rivalries between the Army and the FAR.