32 civilians killed in paramilitary force's attack in Sudan's El Fasher: Army

Khartoum, April 12 (IANS) At least 32 civilians were killed in an attack by the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) on El Fasher, the capital of North Darfur State, the Sudanese army said.

"The militia launched a swarm of suicide drones on El Fasher today (Friday), accompanied by simultaneous artillery shelling on the city," the command of the 6th Infantry Division of the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) said in a statement on Friday.

The death toll included 4 women and 10 children, with 17 others injured and hospitalised, the army said.

The Coordination of Resistance Committees in El Fasher, a local volunteer group, confirmed the RSF attack, stating that drones and artillery targeted the northern and eastern parts of the city. The group asked residents to avoid the streets due to ongoing drone activity.

The Sudanese Doctors Network reported a second RSF strike on the Zamzam displacement camp near El Fasher, though no casualties have been reported. The network condemned the use of heavy artillery in the attack, describing it as an escalation in RSF violence.

Ibrahim Khatir, director-general of North Darfur State's Health Ministry, confirmed the attack on the Zamzam camp but told Xinhua that the casualty count remains unclear due to its distance from the city and communication issues, Xinhua news agency reported.

Since May 10, 2024, fierce fighting has erupted between the Sudanese army and the RSF in El Fasher, part of the broader conflict that has engulfed Sudan since April 2023.

According to the Armed Conflict Location and Event Data Project, cited by the United Nations, the conflict between the two factions has claimed over 29,683 lives. The International Organisation for Migration reports that it has also displaced more than 15 million people.

Earlier, RSF fighters attacked Zamzam displacement camp around El-Fasher, killing 25 civilians, including women, children and elderly residents, the local committee said.

Zamzam, along with other densely populated camps for the displaced around El-Fasher, has suffered heavily during nearly two years of fighting.

--IANS

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