At least five killed in RSF shelling in Sudan’s Khartoum: Lawyers’ group

At least five people have been killed and dozens injured by paramilitary shelling of a mosque in eastern Khartoum, according to a pro-democracy advocacy group in Sudan.

The Emergency Lawyers network, which has been keeping track of abuses committed by both the RSF and the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF), claimed that the attack on Monday, which was blamed on the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), targeted civilians during evening prayers at a mosque in Khartoum’s East Nile district.

In a massive government army offensive on Friday, the RSF reported that there had been a second reported civilian attack since the RSF had destroyed the city’s central Khartoum, including the presidential palace.

In one of the most brutal bombardments in recent months, eyewitnesses have claimed three civilians were killed in Omdurman, Khartoum’s twin city, on Sunday.

As the RSF continues to make advances in the capital, the Sudanese army claims to have taken control of the country’s central bank’s main headquarters.

An army spokesman, Nabil Abdallah, claimed in a statement to the AFP news agency on Saturday that the soldiers had “eliminated hundreds of militia members who attempted to escape through pockets in central Khartoum.”

In the west, the RSF has consolidated its hold, easing conflict and causing de facto division in Sudan. Although it is not anticipated that the RSF will establish a parallel government in the areas it controls, widespread international support is expected.

The military, led by army chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, has been engaged in a conflict with Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, Burhan’s former deputy commander, since April 2023.