Sudan paramilitary forces kill at least 28 in Darfur
Sudanese paramilitaries have killed at least 28 people in an attack on a tribal leader’s stronghold in Darfur, a doctors’ group says, the latest in a devastating war with no resolution in sight.
Paramilitary Rapid Support Forces attacked the town of Misteriha in North Darfur state on Monday, according to the Sudan Doctors Network, which monitors the ongoing war in the country.
The town is the stronghold of Arab tribal leader Musa Hilal, who comes from the Rizeigat Arab tribe, which makes up the majority of paramilitary RSF members.
The health group said in a statement on Tuesday that at least 39 people, including 10 women, were injured in the attack.
There was no comment from RSF and the reasons for the attack are not yet known.
Sudan’s war broke out in 2023 after tensions between the Sudanese army and rival RSF escalated into clashes that began in the country’s capital, Khartoum, and spread across the country. The conflict has killed thousands of people and triggered mass displacement, disease outbreaks and severe food insecurity. Aid workers are frequently targeted.
The medical group said RSF shelling hit the town’s health center on Monday, after which paramilitary fighters attacked medical staff and detained at least one of them.
RSF fighters started their attack on the city with drone attacks that hit Hilal’s guesthouse at the weekend. On Monday they launched a major ground offensive and captured the town.
Emergency Lawyers, an independent group that documents atrocities in Sudan, said RSF fighters set fire to many houses in the town, forcing people to flee to nearby villages.
The capture of Misteriha would likely reveal RSF control of Darfur. But there is a risk of escalating inter-tribal tensions in a region long known for violence and war.
Monday’s attack came four months after the RSF captured al-Fasher, the capital of North Darfur state, after an 18-month siege. Paramilitary forces killed more than 6000 people in the city between 25 and 27 October. The attack was marked by brutality that UN-backed experts said bore “hallmarks of genocide”.
The war has created the world’s largest humanitarian crisis, with more than 14 million people forced to flee their homes. This fueled disease outbreaks and pushed parts of the country into famine; wars are still spreading as they show no signs of abating.
The latest report from the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification earlier this month warned that severe acute malnutrition, the most dangerous and deadly form of malnutrition, was expected to rise by four per cent to 800,000 cases by 2025.
Aid groups have long struggled to meet the growing needs of displaced people across the country and have called for a ceasefire to secure aid delivery to remote areas in Darfur and Kordofan, another hotbed of war.
“The main thing that needs to happen is, of course, a ceasefire,” said Zia Salik, UK interim director of Islamic Relief, an aid group working in Sudan.
“Ultimately, this is what causes the pain and hardship of all civilians caught in the crosshairs.”
