Heavy shooting has been heard in several places in the country. On the outskirts of the capital, there are battles between the Sudanese army and the paramilitary group Rapid Support Forces (RSF). The fighting started near the army headquarters and the Ministry of Defence, as well as the bases of the RSF in Khartoum, but this morning the fighting is said to have spread to the presidential palace in the heart of the capital. Smoke is now billowing from the airport in Khartoum and the paramilitary group says they have taken control of the airport. Eyewitnesses tell the Reuters news agency that smoke is coming from several places and that there are many soldiers out in the streets. The RSF says that the army has surrounded their bases and opened fire with heavy weapons, while the Sudanese army claims that it was the RSF that first attacked their bases in Khartoum and elsewhere in the country. Increased tension The fighting takes place after several days of increased tension in Sudan. Cannons and armored vehicles have been rolled out into the streets. In Khartoum’s neighboring town of Omdurman, artillery and tanks are to be deployed. An RSF spokesperson says the army’s attack is brutal and must be condemned. Dispute over government formation The country’s military leaders took power in Sudan in a coup in October 2021. The intention was that agreements should be made with, among other things, democracy groups in the country to introduce a civilian government. A soldier from the RSF poses with a weapon. There has long been increased tension between the RSF and the government army in Sudan. Photo: Hussein Malla / AP Disagreements between Sudan’s military and the paramilitary group mean that an agreement to install a civilian transitional government in the country has been postponed. The disagreement centers on the powerful paramilitary force RSF, which they want to integrate into the Sudanese defence. Military coup The agreement between the military and the pro-democracy groups, which include the RSF, is necessary to restore a civilian government in Sudan. In 2019, the dictator Omar al-Bashir was overthrown by the military after three decades, as a result of a major popular uprising. A civilian transitional government was then installed with great international support, but this was overthrown by the military in a coup as early as October 2021. A confrontation between the two forces could lead to a bitter and protracted dispute in a country that is already threatened by economic collapse and flare-up of tribal violence.
ttn-69
Hard battles in Sudan – news Urix – Foreign news and documentaries
