PORT SUDAN: At least 13 people were shot dead on Sunday in an attack blamed on Sudan’s paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) in the town of Al-Hilaliya in Al-Jazira state south of Khartoum, AFP reported, citing a medical source.
“Thirteen people were killed as a result of the Rapid Support Forces opening fire on civilians in the town of Al-Hilaliya in eastern Al-Jazira state,” approximately 70 kilometres (43 miles) north of the state capital Wad Madani, the source said.
This incident adds to the mounting toll of violence linked to the RSF, particularly in the wake of recent changes in their command structure.
Al-Jazira state has become a critical battleground following the defection of RSF commander Abu Aqla Kaykal, who recently switched allegiance to the Sudanese army along with a significant number of his troops. This marks the first high-ranking defection from the RSF since the conflict escalated.
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According to Clementine Nkweta-Salami, the United Nations humanitarian coordinator in Sudan, the RSF has launched major offensives in the eastern regions of Al-Jazira state from October 20 to 25, leading to various reports of mass killings, sexual assaults, extensive looting, and the burning of farms and homes.
Nkweta-Salami described these incidents as “atrocious crimes” reminiscent of the human rights abuses documented in Darfur last year, where the RSF was implicated in rape, targeted attacks, and mass killings.
The ongoing conflict in Sudan began in mid-April 2023, pitting the regular army, led by Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, against the RSF, commanded by Mohamed Hamdan Daglo, Burhan’s former deputy.
