At Least 22 Civilians Killed in Reported Airstrike in Sudan

At least 22 civilians were killed in an air strike in the Sudanese city of Omdurman, health authorities said, in one of the deadliest air strikes so far in three months of clashes between Sudan’s rival generals.

The attack took place in the Dar al-Salam neighborhood in the city of Omdurman, adjacent to the capital, Khartoum, according to a brief statement by the Ministry of Health. She added that the attack resulted in the injury of an unspecified number of people.

The ministry released video footage showing bodies on the ground covered with sheets and people trying to pull the dead from under the rubble. Others tried to help the wounded. People can be heard crying.

The attack was one of the bloodiest in the urban battles in the capital and elsewhere in Sudan. The conflict pits the army against a powerful paramilitary group known as the Rapid Support Forces. Last month, an airstrike killed at least 17 people including 5 children in Khartoum.

The RSF blamed the army for Saturday’s attack and other strikes on residential areas in Omdurman, where fighting raged between warring factions, according to residents. The army has reportedly tried to cut off a critical supply line to the paramilitary forces there.

An army spokesman could not be reached for comment.

Two Omdurman residents said it was difficult to determine who was responsible for the attack. They said that army aircraft repeatedly targeted the RSF in the area and that the paramilitary forces used drones and anti-aircraft weapons against the army.

said Abdul Rahman, a resident, who asked that only his first name be used for his safety.

The conflict erupted in mid-April, capping months of growing tensions between the army, headed by General Abdel Fattah Burhan, and the Rapid Support Forces, commanded by General Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo. The fighting came 18 months after the two generals led a military coup in October 2021 that toppled a Western-backed civilian transitional government.

Health Minister Haitham Mohamed Ibrahim said in televised statements last month that the clashes had killed more than 3,000 people and injured more than 6,000 others. According to United Nations figures, more than 2.9 million people have either fled their homes to safer areas within Sudan or crossed into neighboring countries.

The conflict has plunged the African country into chaos and turned Khartoum and other urban areas into battlefields. Elements of the paramilitary forces have occupied people’s homes and other civilian property since the start of the conflict, according to residents and activists. Widespread destruction and looting were also reported in Khartoum and Omdurman.

Sexual violence, including rape of women and girls, has been reported in Khartoum and the West Darfur region, which has seen some of the worst fighting in the conflict. Nearly all reported cases of sexual assault have been blamed on the RSF, which did not respond to repeated requests for comment.