Airstrikes hit Khartoum as the army chief removes an RSF adversary from the Sudan Council

As the conflict between the army and paramilitary forces entered its fifth week, Khartoum, the capital of Sudan, and its sister city Bahri came under further airstrikes, worsening the humanitarian situation for residents who have been trapped or driven from their homes.

Witnesses reported that intense combat between the regular military and paramilitary Rapid Support Forces, or RSF, is causing widespread theft by armed men and civilians, making life even worse for Khartoum citizens who are already struggling.

According to the United Nations agency for refugees, the fighting has driven an estimated 843,000 people from their homes in Sudan and about 250,000 into neighboring nations.

On Friday, Army Chief General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan took the eagerly awaited action of ousting RSF Chief Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, popularly known as Hemedti, from his position as his deputy on the ruling Sovereign Council.

Before plotting a coup in 2021 as a deadline to relinquish power to civilians for a transition toward free elections drew near, the two had been in charge of the council since 2019 when they ousted strongman President Omar al-Bashir during widespread protests against his rule.

The negotiations for a cease-fire, which are being sponsored by Saudi Arabia and the United States, have not made any progress.

The RSF was accused of rape, looting, and violating a number of cease-fires in a statement made by Sudan’s representative at an Arab League meeting there on Friday.

Envoy Dafallah al-Haj stated, “We expect that you will stand with the Sudanese army and will assist us in the next step of restoration.

The RSF claims that the army started the fighting and broke cease-fires. According to this, persons who have committed crimes are sporting stolen RSF gear.

On April 15, violence broke out as a result of disagreements over plans for the RSF to be incorporated into the army and the future chain of command under an international agreement to transition Sudan towards democracy after decades of conflict-ridden authoritarianism.

In accordance with a second order, Burhan appointed Malik Agar, the rebel group’s leader who joined the council in 2020 after striking a peace treaty with the government, as his new deputy.

Later on same day, Burhan promoted other military members of the council, including General Shams El-Din Kabbashi, and appointed him as the deputy commander of the armed forces. The commander picked two generals as his assistants: Yasser Al-Atta and Ibrahim Jabir.

Bodies are everywhere.

On Friday, the RSF utilized anti-aircraft guns to target districts in eastern Khartoum. Witnesses heard the RSF use these weapons. Airstrikes were conducted overnight and on Friday morning in Bahri and Sharg el-Nil, which are located across the Nile River from Khartoum.

“Around 30 military trucks were destroyed by [air]strikes on the road,” I observed. There were bodies everywhere, some of whom were RSF and others were army. Some had already started to decay. Ahmed, a young man traveling through Bahri, described the situation as “really awful.”

The RSF is enmeshed in civilian areas throughout much of Khartoum as well as the neighboring cities of Bahri and Omdurman, prompting virtually constant airstrikes from the regular armed forces.

In order to keep the RSF away from a significant military base in southern Khartoum, witnesses claimed that the army had also begun erecting obstacles on several of the routes.

After weeks of comparatively calm, fighting also broke out for a second day in the southwest’s Nyala, the city that serves as the capital of the South Darfur region.

All day long in Nyala, there was a lot of gunfire and artillery explosions. According to local activists, a local market caught fire and it was impossible for the injured to get to hospitals. There have already been 27 fatalities and dozens of injuries, according to the Darfur Bar Association, a human rights organization.

They urged the RSF to adhere once more to a truce that had been locally mediated, blaming their movements for the flare-up.

Numerous people have been killed in militia attacks and ensuing skirmishes in the city of Geneina in West Darfur.

The army and RSF have both accused the other of being responsible for the rampant theft that has damaged Sudanese houses, companies, gold markets, banks, automobiles, and churches. Law and order have collapsed as a result of the war. Much of the pillaging is being motivated by the quickly diminishing supplies of food, money, and other necessities.

“No one defends us. police absent. 0 states. The thieves are breaking into our homes and stealing everything we own, claimed Sarah Abdelazim, a 35-year-old government worker in Khartoum.

According to the World Health Organization, there have been 705 fatalities and at least 5,287 injuries.

Reuters