KHARTOUM, Aug. 19 (Xinhua) -- The deadly clashes between the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) persisted on Saturday in Nyala, the capital city of South Darfur State in western Sudan, as the conflict in the city has lasted for around a week.
No official statistics have been issued on the number of victims caused by the ongoing clashes.
"The city is experiencing catastrophic humanitarian conditions beyond all expectations," the Nyala Emergency Room Initiative (NERI), a humanitarian group in the city, said in a recent statement.
The clashes resulted in numerous civilian casualties and severe humanitarian violations, with all the hospitals in the state breaking down due to a large number of injuries and a complete lack of health materials, according to the statement.
It added that the interruption in communication services has hindered first aid volunteers from arriving at the city to provide life-saving assistance.
The statement noted that almost all the citizens in the central and southern parts of the city were displaced, with thousands of children and women fleeing to the northern and western areas but finding themselves in a dire situation without shelter, water, and food.
The NERI said it had started a plan to provide citizens with necessities such as life-saving medicines and medical equipment while highlighting the acute shortage of food, clean water, tents, protective gear, necessary provisions, and operational materials for hospital generators and ambulances.
Meanwhile, Minni Arko Minnawi, the governor of the Darfur region, took to X, previously known as Twitter, on Saturday to voice his concern, stating that "the situation in Nyala is a real tragedy. The war has left dozens dead and hundreds injured."
"The capacity of hospitals is not enough, given the number of injuries, amid critical living conditions," he said, calling for humanitarian aid to Nyala residents.
The SAF claimed that the clashes in Nyala were started by the RSF. "The 16th Infantry Division in Nyala has managed to abort all attempts of the rebel militia to attack the division's headquarters," Nabil Abdalla, the Sudanese army spokesman, said in a statement posted on the army's Facebook page on Saturday.
The RSF, for its part, accused the army of bombarding populated areas in Nyala.
"The coup forces have committed the most heinous human crimes via indiscriminate bombardment of populated areas in Nyala, which resulted in hundreds of civilian deaths and thousands of families displaced," the RSF said in a statement on Saturday.
Sudan has been witnessing deadly clashes between the SAF and the RSF since April 15, which have resulted in at least 3,000 deaths and more than 6,000 injuries, according to figures released by the Sudanese Health Ministry. ■
