At least 53 people were killed in a Sudanese paramilitary attack in Darfur, according to a national relief organization

A bombing and drone attack by Sudanese paramilitary forces hit a shelter in a besieged city in the Darfur region, killing at least 53 people, a doctors’ group said on Saturday. The attack was the latest in Sudan’s war has been going on for more than two years.

The Sudan Doctors Network, a group of medical professionals who track the war, says at least 14 children and 15 women were among those killed in the attack late Friday. Rapid Support ForcesOr the Rapid Support Forces on the city of El Fasher.

The organization added that the attack also injured 21 people, including five children and seven women. She added that most of the wounded were seriously injured.

The group said that the attack targeted Dar Al-Arqam, a shelter for displaced families in Al-Fasher, the capital of North Darfur state. The shelter is located at Omdurman Islamic University.

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The medical group said that this massacre represents a continuation of the scorched earth policy practiced by the Rapid Support Forces against civilians, in flagrant violation of all international norms and laws.

The Rapid Support Forces did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Mashhad, a human rights group, called the attack “one of the most horrific massacres” since the Rapid Support Forces began their assault on the city more than a year ago, and said it amounted to “an act of genocide carried out before the blessings of a silent world.”

For months, El Fasher has been a center of fighting between the Sudanese army and paramilitary forces. The city is the last army stronghold in Darfur.

Paramilitary forces, which regularly bomb the city, imposed a complete siege in July.

The United Nations and other relief organizations warn that 260,000 civilians are still trapped in the city after most of its residents fled attacks by the Rapid Support Forces. The population of El Fasher also suffers from hunger and disease outbreaks, including… choleraAccording to the United Nations

Sudan descended into chaos when escalating tensions erupted between the army and the Rapid Support Forces Open combat in April 2023 In the capital, Khartoum, and elsewhere. The fighting escalated into an all-out war that killed tens of thousands of people, displaced more than 14 million people from their homes, and pushed parts of the country into displacement. famine.

the Destructive conflict It has also been marked by atrocities including mass killings and rape, which are being investigated by the International Criminal Court War crimes and crimes against humanity.

& Edition 2025 The Canadian Press