At least 32 civilians killed in crossfire in Khartoum in a single day, union says
Khartoum, Sept 6 (EFE).- At least 32 civilians, including children, were killed on Tuesday in the town of Um Durman, in the Khartoum metropolitan area, by crossfire between the army and the paramilitary group Rapid Support Forces, the Sudan Emergency Lawyers Union denounced.
“In a tragedy and crime, on September 5, 2023, the indiscriminate artillery of the Sudanese Armed Forces claimed the lives of 32 unarmed citizens in Umbada al Hara locality,” the group said in a statement posted on X (formerly Twitter) on Wednesday.
Earlier on Wednesday, the Emergency Committees in Um Durman reported that at least 21 civilians were killed in an intense exchange of artillery attacks in Umbada and the Karari neighborhood.
The committee denounced that “the continuous exchange of attacks” has caused the interruption of water and electricity services and “the displacement of hundreds of families to calmer areas.”
Witnesses informed EFE that the clashes also occurred in several points of Khartoum and in a military base with RSF presence in Um Durman, which the army bombed as it has been doing in the last few days.
“The use of heavy and light artillery in areas inhabited by civilians is a war crime,” the Lawyers Union stressed, warning the warring sides that “these crimes and violations committed against the defenseless will not be exempt from responsibility.”
Um Durman and Umbada are among the areas of the capital where the fiercest fighting occurs, as they are strategic points and host military installations controlled by the RSF.
Violence has escalated in the Sudanese capital despite claims by army leader General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan that the paramilitary rebellion has been crushed, and at a time when he has made his first foreign trip since the outbreak of the conflict in search of support.
Such travels will continue, and Al-Burhan himself will head the Sudanese delegation that will attend the United Nations General Assembly meeting scheduled for September 19-26 in New York, according to a statement released Tuesday night by the Sudanese Ministry of Finance.
According to the local press, the military officer intends to meet with several heads of state to explain his position on the conflict and guarantee their support once the war ends.
So far, all ceasefire negotiations between the army and the RSF have failed, and there is no sign of a political agreement despite ongoing mediation by Saudi Arabia, the United States, South Sudan, and the UN.
According to different statistics, the war has claimed between 1,000 and 5,000 lives, while the UN estimates that more than 5.1 million people have been internally and externally displaced.EFE
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