Sudan: Heavy fighting in the capital Khartoum After arrest: father of Iranian protest icon Amini released

Heavy fighting broke out again in the Sudanese capital Khartoum between the Sudanese army and the opposing paramilitary militia Rapid Support Forces (RSF). Eyewitnesses reported on Sunday that heavy artillery and fighter jet attacks in Khartoum and the neighboring cities of Bahri and Omdurman had been going on since Saturday morning. The Sudanese army said on Saturday evening that it had repelled a coordinated RSF attack on the army headquarters in central Khartoum, killing dozens of RSF fighters. The RSF did not comment on the losses.

Several prominent buildings in the capital burned down this weekend, including the 18-story oil company tower and administrative buildings. While the RSF blamed the army for the destruction, observers accused the RSF of arson. Information about possible civilian casualties was initially not available. The center of Khartoum has been largely evacuated, but fighting in the surrounding residential areas continues to cause deaths.

Since April 15, the army under de facto head of state Abdel Fattah Al-Burhan has been fighting in Sudan against the paramilitary militia Rapid Support Forces (RSF) of its former deputy ruler Mohammed Hamdan Daglo. The generals seized power together in the Northeast African country in 2019 and 2021 and later had a falling out over power sharing. Neither side has managed to gain the upper hand so far. Millions of people have fled. Serious violence continues in Khartoum and the western Sudanese region of Darfur.

(hah/sda/dpa)