Clashes between the Sudanese army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces expanded on Monday to include next to the capital Khartoum, the cities of El Fasher (west), Babanusa (south) and al-Faw (east).
The developments come days after the army announced control of large parts of the city of Omdurman, west of Khartoum.
The Sudanese army said in separate statements that its forces “repelled an attack on the signal corps (of the army) in the city of Bahri, north of Khartoum, and inflicted heavy losses on the enemy (Rapid Support) in lives and equipment.”
“Armoured forces in the al-Shajara area, south of Khartoum, carried out qualitative operations and destroyed the militia’s (Rapid Support) pillars in the Jabra area,” he said.
The army also reported that its forces in the eastern area of al-Faw, adjacent to Gezira province (centre), had destroyed combat vehicles and received others from the Rapid Support Forces.
As of 17:20 (GMT), the RSF had not commented on the army statements.
Eyewitnesses told Anadolu Agency on Monday that the Rapid Support Forces “attacked the command of the 22nd Infantry Division in the city of Babanusa in West Darfur state.”
The witnesses added that “artillery shelling between the army and the Rapid Support led to civilian deaths and injuries (without mentioning a number).”
The private newspaper “Sudan Tribune” said on Monday that “the fierce battles between the army and the Rapid Support in Babanousa left large numbers (unspecified) of dead and wounded among civilians, and the displacement of tens of thousands from the city.”
Renewed clashes also resumed in the city of El Fasher in North Darfur state on Monday morning, between the army and the Rapid Support and led to casualties among the displaced in the “Naivasha” camp in the city.
The spokesman of the Coordination of Displaced Persons and Refugees in the city of El Fasher, Adam Rahhal, said in a statement seen by Anatolia that “4 people in the Naivasha camp were injured, following renewed clashes in the northern neighborhoods of the city of El Fasher.”
Since mid-April 2023, the Sudanese army and the RSF have been fighting a war that has left about 13,900 dead and more than 8 million displaced and refugees, according to the United Nations.
Source: Anadolu Agency
