Sudan: 13 killed in paramilitary strike on mosque

Sudan’s paramilitary Rapid Support Forces’ artillery attack on a mosque in Al-Fashir housing displaced families killed 13 people, The New Arab reported via AFP on October 9^th.

Anonymous sources reported that the strike originated from the north, where the Rapid Support Forces established control after targeting and attacking the Abu Shouk refugee camp.

The mosque sheltered 70 families, and the artillery strike killed 13 people and left 20 people wounded. A resident from the region of this devastating strike, describing the plight of the people post-attack, said they had to pull all 13 bodies from under the rubble and bury them.

Between October 7^th and 8^th, the Rapid Support Forces launched strikes on Al-Fashir hospital, killing 20 people in the process. The Al-Fashir hospital is one of the last operating health facilities in the city.

Since the beginning of the civil war in Sudan in 2023, the Rapid Support Forces’ assault on Al-Fashir has arguably been the deadliest, with the paramilitary group launching artillery and drone strikes on displacement camps in and around the city.

The Rapid Support Forces’ siege on the city has forced families to rely on animal feed to nourish themselves, which itself has now grown scarce. The war has displaced and destroyed families, plunging nearly 25 million people into what the United Nations has proclaimed to be the world’s largest hunger and displacement crisis.

While there is no officially confirmed record of the number of people killed, the number is expected to be staggering, as the violence has left people wounded and unable to access healthcare.

The North Darfur state capital, despite being the last remaining city under the army’s control, has significantly shrunk since 2023. The tensions between the army and the paramilitary group have had and continue to have a devastating effect on the city and its people. While the army continues to preside over Sudan’s northern, central, and eastern regions, if the Rapid Support Forces succeed in their gruesome attempt to secure Al-Fashir, the Darfur region will be under the group’s control.