56 killed by paramilitary forces in Sudan’s western city in two days: Volunteer groups

Khartoum: At least 56 people were killed by the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) between in Umm Kadada city in North Darfur State, western Sudan, volunteer groups reported.

These people were “executed on an ethnic basis” after the RSF took control of the city on Thursday, the Coordination of Resistance Committees in the state’s capital El Fasher said, identifying all the victims as civilians.

The local volunteer group accused in a statement the militia of “committing widespread violations, forcibly displacing residents, and shutting down all communication networks.”

Meanwhile, the Sudanese Emergency Lawyers Initiative, another volunteer group, confirmed in a statement that the RSF killed 52 civilians, burned residential homes, and looted properties in two days after entering Umm Kadada.

“The RSF also stormed the local hospital, assaulted patients, and executed four medical staff members, including the hospital’s director,” it added.

There has been no comment from the RSF regarding the claims, Xinhua news agency reported.

Earlier on Friday more than 114 civilians were killed in attacks by the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) on two displacement camps over the past two days in El Fasher, the capital of North Darfur State in western Sudan, a local official announced.

“More than 100 civilians were killed as a result of the brutal attack launched by the RSF militia on the Zamzam displacement camp yesterday (Friday), with dozens injured,” Ibrahim Khatir, director general of North Darfur State’s health authority, told Xinhua.

” On Saturday, 14 civilians were also killed due to another militia attack on the Abu Shouk displacement camp, with dozens more injured,” he added.

Khatir revealed that among the dead in the Zamzam camp were nine employees of Relief International, a non-governmental organisation operating a field hospital in the camp.

Sudan has been embroiled in a devastating conflict between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the RSF since mid-April 2023, which has claimed more than 29,600 lives, according to the Armed Conflict Location and Event Data, a crisis monitoring group cited by the United Nations.

–IANS