Conflict In Sudan Dangerously Affecting Civilians – UN
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The United Nations, UN, High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Türk, has said that the conflict in Sudan is taking an more dangerous turn for civilians.
Türk stated this in a statement on Friday.
This is coming in the wake of reports that dozens were brutally killed in ethnically targeted attacks in Al Jazirah state in the southeast.
This is also amid reports of an imminent battle for the control of the country’s capital, Khartoum.
It was gathered that the Sudanese Armed Forces, SAF, and a rival military, the Rapid Support Forces, RSF, have been fighting since April 2023 in what Türk described as a senseless war.
As they battle for control at all cost, direct and ethnically motivated attacks on civilians are becoming increasingly common.
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“The situation for civilians in Sudan is already desperate, and there is evidence of the commission of war crimes and other atrocity crimes.
“I fear the situation is now taking a further, even more dangerous turn,” he said.
It was gathered that last week no fewer than 21 people were killed in just two attacks on camps in Al Jazirah, located some 40 kilometres from the state capital, Wad Madani.
However, the actual number of attacks directed at civilians, and of civilians killed, are likely to be higher.
On January 10, at least eight civilians were killed in an attack on Taiba Camp, and at least 13 women and one man were abducted.
Houses were burnt and livestock, crops and other property looted, while dozens of families were displaced.
The next day, at least 13 civilians were killed, including two boys, in an assault on Khamsa Camp.
The attacks came in the context of the recapture of Wad Madani by the SAF.
Reports suggest they were carried out by the Sudan Shield Forces led by Abu Aqla Keikal, a former RSF commander, who defected to the other side last October.
The attacks reportedly targeted the Kanabi, a historically marginalised group comprised mainly of Nuba and other African tribes.
Türk noted that the Sudanese authorities’ assurance that the attacks would be fully investigated and those responsible brought to justice, and an investigation committee has been established.
