Renewed clashes and artillery exchanges between the Sudanese army and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) erupted on Tuesday in El Fasher, the capital of North Darfur State, according to reports.
Eyewitnesses reported that the army and allied armed groups engaged in combat with the RSF in the northern parts of the city. Other witnesses noted that several neighborhoods in the south of the city were subjected to intense artillery shelling, with loud explosions and gunfire heard in the north and east, accompanied by thick plumes of smoke.
Witnesses also indicated that communication networks and the internet have been unavailable in most parts of El Fasher for days, and power outages continue.
The RSF has imposed a tight siege on the city in an attempt to seize control, having already secured four out of five states in the Darfur region. This has prompted international and regional warnings about the potential overrun of the city, which shelters millions of displaced people fleeing conflict-ridden areas of the region.
Meanwhile, the so-called Wad Madani Resistance Committees, the capital of Al Jazirah State in central Sudan, accused the RSF of imposing a partial siege on Al-Azazi village and forcing the displacement of most villages south of Wad Al-Nura. The RSF has controlled the city since December.
The conflict between the Sudanese army and the RSF began in mid-April last year following disputes over plans to integrate the RSF into the army as part of an internationally supported political process aimed at leading to elections.
