August 28, El Fasher — Soldiers from the Sudanese army are taking over residential areas in El Fasher, capital of North Darfur, and using homes and former government facilities as bases, residents told Darfur24.
A resident of Aldarga district, H.E., said that the presence of the military inside residential neighborhoods endangered the security of citizens more than it benefited them. These areas, he claimed, are being directly targeted by the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) due to the presence of the military among civilians.
The RSF has been fighting the Sudanese army in El Fasher since May. They conducted intense shelling in El Fasher in the last week, bombing a market in a displacement camp and a hospital. At least 25 civilians have been killed, dozens injured and the hospital was destroyed.
A resident of Abu Shouk Al-Hilla neighborhood, A.Y., said that citizens are paying the price for allowing forces to be present among them. He claimed that the bombing in and around the market was due to it being used as Sudanese military headquarters. The Darfur Network for Human Rights (DNHR), a rights monitoring group, reported ongoing communication blackouts and poor network conditions yesterday, “which severely hamper efforts to obtain detailed information from the ground.