- RSF attack in Sudan kills up to 100
- RSF besieges villages, targets civilians
- UN demands accountability, investigation
Local pro-democracy activists have reported that the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) have conducted an attack on a village in central Sudan, resulting in the deaths of “up to 100” individuals.
The Wad Madani Resistance Committees reported on social media late on Wednesday that the RSF, which has been at war with the regular army for over a year, attacked the village of Wad al-Noura in Gezira state “in two waves” and deployed heavy artillery.
The Sudanese army had not responded to a request for assistance, according to the committees, who shared photographs of a “mass grave” in the public square, where dozens of corpses were wrapped for burial. It stated that it was “awaiting confirmation of the number of fatalities and injuries.”
According to Mini Arko Minawi, the governor of Darfur province, the attacks claimed the lives of women, children, and older people. Minawi verified the massacre by posting a video on the social media platform X that included the shrouded corpses.
The RSF has repeatedly attacked and besieged entire villages throughout Sudan, with a particular emphasis on the agricultural state of Gezira, where it seized possession of the capital, Wad Madani, in December.
The group announced in a statement on Wednesday that it had conducted attacks on army and allied militia bases in the vicinity of Wad al-Noura. However, it did not specify any civilian casualties.
However, the Wad Madani Resistance Committees accused it of conducting lethal attacks on civilians, plundering, and compelling women and children to seek refuge in the nearby town of Managil.
The Transitional Sovereign Council, aligned with the army, denounced the alleged attack.
“These are criminal acts that are indicative of the systematic targeting of civilians by these militias,” it stated in a statement.
Clementine NkwetaSalami, the UN’s Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator for Sudan, demanded a comprehensive investigation and accountability in response to the reports of the murders.
The UN officials issued a statement that stated, “The images emerging from Wad Al-Noura are heart-breaking, even by the tragic standards of Sudan’s conflict.”
“Life in Sudan is characterized by human tragedy.” She stated, “We cannot permit impunity to become another.”
“Time is ebbing away.”
Although most of the initial conflict occurred near the capital, Khartoum, it rapidly disseminated to other regions of Sudan, such as the southwestern state of Darfur. There, it assumed an interethnic character as ancient rivalries associated with a previous conflict that commenced in 2003 were renewed.
The RSF was formed from the Janjaweed, an Arab force that rebel organizations referred to as such. This force was responsible for the deaths of thousands of non-Arabs in Darfur during a conflict that concluded in 2020 with a peace agreement.
Sudan’s economy has been weakened, infrastructure has been destroyed, and tens of thousands of individuals have been slain in the conflict that has lasted for the past 14 months.
Hunger and malnutrition are on the rise, and approximately 8.3 million individuals have been forcibly relocated to neighbouring Chad and South Sudan.
Last week, United Nations agencies issued a joint statement warning that the time is running out for millions of individuals in Sudan who are at imminent risk of famine, have been displaced from their homes, are living under bombardment, and are unable to access humanitarian assistance.
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The RSF has seized control of the majority of western Sudan and is currently attempting to expand into the central region of the nation.
In the interim, the army and the western city of el-Fasher have resumed hostilities, employing heavy weapons and artillery.
Claire Nicolet, the director of emergency response in Sudan for Doctors Without Borders, stated that the conflict is having a catastrophic impact on the population.
“There will be an extremely high mortality rate if the current situation persists”.
In April 2023, Sudan’s civil war broke out due to a rivalry between Sudan’s army chief, Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, and his deputy and RSF commander, Mohamed Hamdan “Hemedti” Dagalo.
