On
Monday, the Sudanese army launched airstrikes against its paramilitary rivals
in the north of the country's capital Khartoum, reportedly damaging a hospital
in the process.
Despite
talks between the army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) in
Jeddah aimed at guaranteeing humanitarian access and a truce, intense combat
have continued in Khartoum and its sister cities of Bahri and Omdurman. These
talks were mediated by Saudi Arabia and the United States.
According
to Reuters, the fighting has spread to the western region of Darfur, but has
been concentrated in the capital, where RSF fighters have taken up positions
across neighbourhoods and the army has used air strikes and heavy artillery
fire to target them.
"We're
under heavy bombardment now in Sharq el-Nil and Rapid Support are responding
with anti-aircraft guns," said 55-year-old Awatef Saleh, referring to the
area she lives in along the Nile in Bahri. "All this is happening near our
homes, we're in a state of terror and fear."
In
a voice message released by the RSF, its leader Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, known as
Hemedti, dismissed rumours that he had been killed or injured in the battles.
"I
am moving freely around my forces, I am present in Bahri, I am present in
Omdurman, I am present in Khartoum, I am present in Sharq al-Nil," Hemedti
said.
"They
are spreading rumours that Mohamed Hamdan has been killed, and these are all
lies that show that they are being defeated ... I am thank God present with the
troops," he said.
Following
the toppling of former president Omar al-Bashir in a popular revolt in 2019,
army head General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and Hemedti occupied the top posts on
Sudan's ruling council and attempted a coup two years later as a deadline to
cede power to civilians approached.
Conflicts
over the RSF's proposed plans to join the army and the chain of command during
a new political transition led to the start of the war.
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People
board a minibus as they evacuate southern Khartoum on May 14.
A
humanitarian crisis that threatens to destabilize the region has forced over
700,000 people to be displaced inside of Sudan and approximately 200,000 to
escape into neighboring nations.
Survival
is a struggle for those who remain in Khartoum.
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