more than 20 civilians killed in falling shells on a market near Khartoum

For several months, Sudan has been torn apart by war between rival generals. According to a statement from the Pro-Democracy Lawyers Committee which documents civilian casualties and human rights violations in this conflict, “more than 20 civilians were killed and others were injured,” Sunday, November 5, in the evening, by the fall of shells on a market located in a suburb near Khartoum, the capital. “During intense exchanges of fire between the belligerents, shells fell on a market in Omdurman,” according to this press release.

The day before, at least 15 civilians were killed by “shells falling on their houses” in Khartoum, this time a medical source said.

Negotiations are stalling

Started on April 15, the war between the army led by General Abdel Fattah al-Burhane and the Rapid Support Forces (FSR, paramilitary) of General Mohamed Hamdane Daglo, left more than 9,000 dead, according to an estimate by the NGO Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project (Acled), considered largely underestimated. It also displaced more than 6 million people and destroyed most infrastructure.

Talks between the belligerents resumed at the end of October in the Saudi city of Jeddah, aiming “to facilitate the delivery of humanitarian assistance, to establish ceasefires and other confidence-building measures, and to progress towards a permanent cessation of hostilities”, according to Saudi authorities. But so far previous attempts at mediation have only resulted in brief truces, all of which have been systematically violated.