Sudan - As explosions and gunfire rang out outside, Sudanese in the capital Khartoum and other cities hid in their houses for a third day Monday, as the army and a formidable opposing group battled in the streets for control of the country.
According to the United Nations, at least 185 people have been killed and over 1,800 have been injured since the conflict began. Volker Perthes, the ambassador, told reporters. Tanks, artillery, and other heavy weaponry are being used by both sides in highly populated areas. As night fell, fighter jets soared overhead, and anti-aircraft fire illuminated the skies.
The death toll may be considerably higher since there are more dead in the streets surrounding downtown Khartoum that no one can reach due to the confrontations. There has been no official confirmation of the number of civilians or combatants killed. The physicians' syndicate had previously estimated 97 civilian fatalities.
Over the weekend, a sudden outbreak of violence between the country's two senior generals, each backed by tens of thousands of highly armed warriors, imprisoned millions of people in their homes or wherever they could find cover, with supplies running low and numerous hospitals forced to close.
Top diplomats from four continents hurried to reach an agreement, and the United Nations. The Security Council was scheduled to meet to examine the problem.
Sustained gunfire occurred in central Khartoum, and white smoke ascended near the main military headquarters, a key battlefront. Nearby, at least 88 students and personnel have been trapped in Khartoum University's engineering college library since the violence began, one of the students claimed in a video put online Monday. According to him, one student was slain and another was injured amid skirmishes outside. He showed a room full of people sleeping on the floor and stated, "They don't have food or water."
Even in a country where military coups are common, the sights of battle in the capital and its neighboring city Omdurman across the Nile River were extraordinary. The upheaval comes only days before Sudanese celebrate Eid al-Fitr, the end-of-Ramadan, the Islamic month of fasting.
The power battle sets Gen. Abdel-Fattah Burhan, the commander of the armed forces, against Gen. Mohammed Hamdan Dagalo, the leader of the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF). The erstwhile allies planned a military coup in October 2021. The violence has raised the prospect of civil war at a time when Sudanese were attempting to relaunch the campaign for a democratic, civilian government after decades of military rule.
Burhan and Dagalo had just agreed to a framework deal with political parties and pro-democracy organizations under international pressure, but the signature was frequently postponed as tensions escalated over the integration of the RSF into the military forces and the future chain of command.
The United States, the United Nations, and others have urged for a cease-fire. Egypt, which supports Sudan's military, as well as Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, which have developed close connections with the RSF in recent years by sending hundreds of soldiers to help their war in Yemen, have also urged for both sides to stand down.
Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sissi said late Monday that Cairo was in "constant contact" with both the army and the RSF, encouraging them to stop violence and resume talks.
But, thus far, both generals have dug in and demanded the surrender of the other.
Josep Borrell, the European Union's foreign policy leader, stated on Twitter that the EU ambassador to Sudan "was assaulted in his own residency," without offering any information. Requests for reaction from EU authorities were not immediately returned.
Both generals have a long history of human rights abuses, and their forces have cracked down on pro-democracy activists. Dagalo, whose forces grew out of the notorious Janjaweed militias in Sudan's Darfur region, has portrayed himself as a defender of democracy, and Burhan as the aggressor and a "radical Islamist."
Heavy gunfights erupted in many districts of the city and Omdurman, where both sides have deployed tens of thousands of troops in practically every neighborhood.
The Sudan Doctors' Syndicate said that twelve hospitals in the capital region have been "forcefully evacuated" and are "out of service" due to assaults or power shortages, out of a total of roughly 20 hospitals. Four additional hospitals outside of the city have also been closed, according to a statement issued late Monday.
Hadia Saeed claimed she and her three children were hiding in a single room on the bottom level of their home for fear of being shelled as gunshots rang out over their Bahri area in north Khartoum. They have enough food for a few days, but "after that, we don't know what to do," she says.
Residents reported violent combat with artillery and other heavy weaponry in the Gabra suburb southwest of Khartoum on Monday afternoon. People were trapped and screaming inside their homes, according to Asmaa al-Toum, a local physician.
Fighting has been especially intense around each side's main bases and critical government facilities, all of which are located in residential neighborhoods.
After days of combat, the military claimed to have seized Omdurman's major television facility on Monday. Sudan TV has started transmitting.
