Sudan coup: Entrenched without water or electricity, people survive the crossfire

The smell of gunpowder and the sound of gunfire are a constant in Khartoum. On the third day of clashes between the Sudanese Army and paramilitaries of the Rapid Support Forces (FAR), the civilian population of the country’s capital he has become hostage to the situationtrying to survive without light or water in the crossfire at any time of day.

According to the latest report from a medical union, at least 100 civilians were killed from Saturday.

Despite the fact that Sunday was decreed a humanitarian runner three hours to evacuate civilians, fighting continued unabated. Amidst the chaos, some residents ventured out to stock up on supplies at the few shops left open.

Inside the shops, the jostling between people, some of them dressed two days without eatingthey were constant.

“This is beyond what I could have imagined. I am shocked. If the two sides do not negotiate, the country will fragment. Unfortunately that was to be expected.“, a man named Kamal explained to Radio France International (RFI).

Despite the risk of a stray bullet, men spread a carpet on the floor to share iftarthe breaking of the fast in the holy month of Ramadan.

“This is a war between two armies, but it is citizens who shed their blood. We don’t know who will win, both forces are powerful, but civilians are caught in the crossfire. These are difficult days, we don’t know what tomorrow will bring“, He says.

“We have feared these fighting since the October 25 coup. There cannot be two armies in one country. Even if we revolutionaries have problems with the army, that doesn’t mean that the FAR of Hemedti (the name by which Mohamed Hamdan Daglo is known) they have the right to take control of the country. And later, when it’s all over, we’ll have to sort it out with the army. But the FAR must disappear, they must end,” explains Asma al-Amin, head of a resistance committee in Khartoum, a civil society organization.

“We cannot accept that there are two armies in one country. The only ones to suffer from this situation are the poor citizens. In our country, 50-60% of the population earns a living day after day. And now, with the fighting… let’s hope it’s over. There will be victims, but let’s hope they are as few as possible“, he adds.

confusing situation

After a relative lull on Sunday night, between 1 and 4 in the morning, the clashes resumed with intensity at dawn on Monday, and were still concentrated around the Palazzo della Repubblica and the headquarters of the armed forces. Artillery fights also take place in residential areas, with shells sometimes falling randomly on rooftops.

The Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) under General al-Burhane were reported to have resumed command on Sunday with the recapture of the Meroe air base in the north of the country confirmed.

SAF command claimed to be chasing paramilitaries on the streets of Khartoum. Tanks cordoned off several neighborhoods last night. The army continues to maintain air superiority and has carried out new airstrikes on Khartoum this morning.

The rapid support forces say they have shot down several planes and helicopters. The militias would be more successful in Darfur, where they seized Nyala airport.

Shooting and shelling continued on the streets of Khartoum on Sunday. Although both sides agreed to open the humanitarian corridors for three hours in the afternoon, the fighting did not subside, to the disgrace of the medics, who counted more than 600 injured on Sunday.

“We will run out of medical supplies soon. So far everything is going well but the staff is exhausted. Some have been mobilized since Friday, uninterruptedly for three days. It’s dangerous outside. All cities are paralysed,” a doctor working at a hospital in Khartoum told RFI.

“Gunshots are still heard around the hospital, you can’t go from one neighborhood to another. Ambulances cannot circulate, they cannot bring us other bags of blood or medicines. Some wounded cannot reach the hospital. The doctors would like to help, but they can’t either. Being outside is very dangerous,” she explains.

And he continues: “But we must be able to bring more personnel, we need more medical supplies. We have to find a solution in the next few hours. The two military forces must stop this situation, they cannot leave us in this emergency situation. This has to stop. This must be considered a very serious humanitarian situation.”

The World Food Programme suspended its humanitarian aid after the death of three of its employees. And the secretary general of the United Nations, Antonio Guterres, has asked that those responsible “be brought to justice as soon as possible”.

The Arab League and the African Union held emergency meetings on Sunday. Moussa Faki Mahamat, chairman of the AU commission, will travel to Sudan as soon as possible to “commit the parties to a ceasefire“.

Source: RFI