Doctors Blame Paramilitary Forces For Deadly Market Attack In Sudan

Tragedy struck on Sunday, as shelling at a bustling market in Sennar, southeastern Sudan, left at least 21 people dead and over 70 others wounded.

The Sudan Doctors Network has condemned the shelling. The attack, blamed on the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), has been described as a “massacre”.

Confirming the casualty numbers, the doctors’ union stated that medical teams are working tirelessly to treat the injured.

This occurred amidst a worsening humanitarian crisis, with over 10 million displaced and thousands killed since the civil war began last April.

Despite international efforts, peace talks have failed to end the conflict. Several rounds of peace talks have been brokered by Saudi Arabia and the US.

The RSF, led by Mohamed Hamdan “Hemedti” Dagalo, controls significant areas, including parts of Khartoum, Kordofan, and Darfur, where they are accused of using rape as a weapon of war and targeting non-Arab communities.

It emerged from the Janjaweed militia which was accused of genocide against non-Arab communities in Darfur in 2003.

Both sides are accused of committing atrocities, with recent UN discoveries suggesting potential war crimes and crimes against humanity. The Sudanese government has rejected the UN findings, calling the Human Rights Council “political and illegal.”

“The Sudanese government rejects in their entirety the recommendations of the UN mission,” the Sudanese foreign ministry which is loyal to army chief Gen Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, said in a statement on Saturday.

The situation remains dire, with the RSF seeking international legitimacy despite their involvement in the conflict. In recent months it has been sending delegates to peace talks in Switzerland that were snubbed by the army.

This latest incident brings the death toll in Sudan to over 20,000 in the past 16 months, with many more displaced and affected by the ongoing conflict.