KASSALA: More than 50 people have been killed in fierce clashes in Sudan’s Al-Jazira state over the past two days after a paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) commander defected to the Sudanese army, local activists in central Sudan reported on Tuesday.
The activists reported the violence erupted on Sunday after a high-ranking RSF commander defected to the army.
In Wad Madani, the state capital, a military airstrike on a mosque killed 31 people, according to a statement released by the local resistance committee. The group, part of a network of volunteer organizations providing aid across the war-torn country, accused the army of using “barrel bombs” in the attack.
They said more than half of the victims remain unidentified as rescuers continue to search through the debris, uncovering “dozens of charred and mutilated bodies.”
In the eastern part of Al-Jazira, activists reported that at least 20 civilians have been killed in paramilitary attacks since the weekend. The region has seen heavy fighting since April 2023, when conflict broke out between the Sudanese military and the RSF, leading to tens of thousands of deaths and creating one of the world’s largest humanitarian crises.
The current battle for control of Al-Jazira state intensified after Abu Aqla Kaykal, the RSF commander for the region, defected to the army on Sunday.
In an announcement, the Sudanese armed forces said Kaykal had brought “a large number of his forces” with him, marking the first high-profile defection from the paramilitary side. Army spokesman Abdel Fattah al-Burhan confirmed that those who defect would receive “amnesty,” as civilians feared renewed attacks.
The defection triggered violent reprisals from the RSF. Eyewitnesses reported that paramilitary troops stormed the town of Tamboul, 75 kilometres north of Wad Madani, shortly after the army had briefly taken control. RSF soldiers were seen “shooting randomly in the air” and forcing civilians to transport looted goods, according to witnesses.
By Tuesday, RSF sources claimed they had “repelled an army attempt” to regain control of Tamboul. The RSF, long accused of systemic abuses including looting and sexual violence, has reportedly intensified attacks on civilians in response to Kaykal’s defection.
Activists said the paramilitary group has been carrying out “vengeful operations” in eastern Al-Jazira, with at least 20 civilians killed in attacks on villages near the town of Rufaa.
Both the Sudanese military and the RSF have been accused of committing war crimes throughout the conflict, including the deliberate targeting of civilians, indiscriminate shelling of residential areas, and blocking or looting humanitarian aid.
According to the Central Observatory for Human Rights, seven towns and villages in Al-Jazira have been subjected to “vengeful attacks” over the past few days.
