Resistance committees urge Sudan army to intervene as RSF advances in El Gezira

The Rapid Support Forces (RSF) reported conducting an operation against “criminals” south of Abu Gouta in El Gezira on Sunday, “in response to complaints” from El Kitra residents. Civil society organisations blame the paramilitary group for any human rights violations in El Gezira, which came under control of the RSF in December.

In a statement released on Tuesday, the RSF claimed to have eliminated 20 criminals in clahses in El Kitra, “resulting in the death of one officer and two soldiers”. They announced their intention to investigate the group involved in the Sunday clashes, and to “uncover their motives for targeting civilians systematically”.

The statement reported the emergence of “documented scenes online depicting individuals wearing RSF uniforms in Sennar, White Nile, and El Gedaref states”, interpreting this as “conclusive evidence” of the involvement of “remnants of the former regime” in perpetrating serious crimes against innocent civilians in El Gezira, “as part of known plans and agendas”.

Former El Gezira Governor Abdallah Idris questioned the accuracy of the information presented in the RSF statement, regarding the alleged clash in El Kitra area on Sunday. He emphasised that the Abu Gouta area and its neighbouring villages had “experienced stability and calm for more a month”.

In an interview with Radio Dabanga, Idris, a resident of Abu Gouta, stated that there were conflicting reports about the events in Abu Gouta on Sunday. “While there were reports of limited clashes lasting two hours resulting in injuries, there were no reported fatalities, and the situation was said to have quickly returned to normal”.

Idris held the RSF accountable for any violations in El Gezira, “as they control the region”. He urged refraining from attributing violations to other parties and emphasised that any infractions should be attributed to the RSF, “even if perpetrated by rogue elements”.

Echoing this sentiment, the Wad Madani Resistance Committees asserted in a statement on Monday that all violations in El Gezira were committed by the RSF, dismissing claims of involvement by any other party as “false and misleading RSF media narratives”.

RSF advance

Yesterday, the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) declared their control over El Medina Arab area and said they are moving towards El Managil, El Gezira. Listeners in the area told Radio Dabanga that “the army withdrew to Wad Rabia” following the advance.

The Wad Madani resistance committees urged “honourable” members of the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) not to comply with orders from “the security committee of the ousted regime of Omar Al Bashir” and to move towards El Gezira to “combat RSF war crimes”.

As reported by Radio Dabanga, fierce fighting took place between the SAF and the RSF west of Wad Madani, capital of El Gezira, on Friday. 

Violations

Since Wad Madani fell to the RSF in December last year, after only four days of resistance from the Sudanese army, life in the state, south of Khartoum, has reportedly “turned into a hell” as the paramilitaries are wreaking havoc in rural El Gezira.

The Central Observatory for Human Rights (COHR) said on February 27 it documented 46 deaths and more than 90 injuries in 39 attacks on villages in El Gezira, between February 6 and 27.

The Wad Madani Resistance Committees on Monday decried the systematic displacement of civilians in El Gezira “amidst silence from political forces, human rights organisations, and the international community”. They vowed to expose the RSF’s crimes to the media, describing them as “bloody and aimed at defenseless civilians”.

The statement alleged that RSF members killed three medical personnel in El Gezira after a failed surgical operation on one of their members.

On Monday, the Sudanese Congress Party in El Gezira condemned the detention of Mohamed Abdelrahman, a lawyer and deputy political secretary within the party, from his home in El Gezira by the RSF.