At least 33 people have lost their lives in a series of attacks in Sudan, with the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) being blamed for the violence. This escalation comes amid ongoing conflicts between the RSF and the army, which have been at war since April 2023. Reports indicate that in the days leading up to these casualties, the RSF conducted six consecutive days of drone strikes targeting the army-led government’s wartime capital, Port Sudan. Significant damage was inflicted on vital infrastructure, including the power grid.
One particularly devastating event occurred on Friday evening, when an air strike hit a displacement camp in the western region of Darfur, claiming the lives of at least 14 family members. The rescue group involved in aiding victims of the conflict reported that the Abu Shouk camp was subjected to “intense bombardment” by the RSF, resulting in multiple injuries among the camp’s residents.
The Abu Shouk camp, located near El-Fasher, remains a critical refuge for tens of thousands of people fleeing various conflicts in Darfur and the wider turmoil enveloping Sudan since early 2023. The United Nations has highlighted the severe famine conditions affecting the camp, which is one of the last areas in Darfur not under RSF control. In recent weeks, the RSF has repeatedly shelled this camp, worsening an already dire humanitarian situation.
Nearby, the Zamzam camp has already fallen into RSF hands after a major offensive in April that drastically reduced its population. At one point, nearly one million people were seeking safety there, illustrating the pervasive instability across the region.
On Saturday, violence erupted again when an RSF drone strike targeted a prison in El-Obeid, a city in the southern region controlled by the army. This attack resulted in at least 19 fatalities and injured 45 others, according to reports from medical sources.
The conflict, initially sparked by a power struggle between army chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and RSF commander Mohamed Hamdan Daglo, has escalated into what the United Nations has described as the world’s worst humanitarian crisis. The war has effectively partitioned the country, with the army holding sway over the northern, eastern, and central regions, while the RSF and its allies control nearly all of Darfur and parts of the south. This ongoing strife poses an urgent challenge for humanitarian efforts and exacerbates the suffering of countless civilians caught in the crossfire.
