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West Darfur Governor Killed as Fighting Ravages Sudan

The governor of West Darfur state, Khamis Abakar, was killed on Wednesday June 14, 2023, an armed group he commanded has said. News agencies report that government sources said the paramiliatry Rapid Support Force was responsible for the killing.

The United Nations Special Representative for Sudan, Volker Perthes, said on June 13, 2023 that the security, human rights and humanitarian situation was deteriorating rapidly across the country, particularly in the greater Khartoum, Darfur and Kordofan areas. Perthes said he was particularly alarmed by the situation in El Geneina, capital of West Darfur, where the violence has taken on ethnic dimensions. "There is an emerging pattern of large-scale targeted attacks against civilians based on their ethnic identities, allegedly committed by Arab militias and some armed men in Rapid Support Force (RSF)'s uniform. These reports are deeply worrying and, if verified, could amount to crimes against humanity," he said.

Earlier, the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) called on Sudan's warring parties to cease all hostilities and give real dialogue a chance. Speaking at the opening session of the 14th Ordinary Assembly of the IGAD Heads of State and Government held in Djibouti on June 12,2023, the regional bloc's executive secretary Workneh Gebeyehu said that the violence and bloodshed must stop in Sudan.

Radio Dabanga reports that heavy fighting erupted between units of the warring Sudan Armed Forces (SAF) and paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) in various points in and around the Sudan capital Khartoum on Sunday evening (June11), just after a 24-hour humanitarian ceasefire lapsed.

The country had seen deadly fighting since mid-April, 2023 when clashes erupted between forces loyal to army chief and de facto leader Abdel al-Burhan and fighters commanded by his former deputy, Mohamed Hamdan Daglo, known as Hemeti, who leads the RSF.

The conflict has displaced more than 1.9 million people both internally and externally and triggered a major humanitarian crisis. More than 1,800 people have been killed in the fighting, according to the Armed Conflict Location and Event Data Project.

MSF

The MSF in Khartoum, Sudan, has been under fire.

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