*RSF attacked Nahud, which lies on a critical access route to Darfur, early on Thursday*
*Fifteen women and 21 children believed to be among those killed*
*City hosts around 45,000 people displaced from surrounding region*
FRI 2 MAY -- Over 100 civilians have been executed after the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) attacked a key city in West Kordofan in the early hours of Thursday morning, according to reports.
The Sudan Doctors Network (SDN) said that, beginning on Thursday night, the RSF carried out a “large-scale massacre” in the city of Nahud, with those killed including 21 children and 15 women. Troops also looted local markets as well as the Al-Nuhud Teaching Hospital, a medical supplies warehouse, and several pharmacies, it said.
Nahud is estimated to host around 45,000 people displaced from elsewhere in the region. SDN added that the attacks were ongoing as of Friday afternoon and that the death toll was expected to rise.
Reports suggest that four prominent local figures, including a director of the police force and a well-known preacher, had been killed in their family homes. Video on social media also showed a group of captured SAF soldiers being beaten and forced to make animal noises.
The RSF claimed to have taken Nahud early on Thursday afternoon, with its fighters posting numerous videos of themselves in front of landmarks around the city, although SAF later said fighting for control of the city was ongoing. One clip showed RSF troops standing over the bodies of a SAF soldier and a member of Sudan’s Central Reserve Police, a military police unit.
Subsequent reports said SAF had withdrawn to Al-Khawi, around 100km to the east of Nahud, and that violent clashes were occurring inside the city.
Nahud is situated on a key highway that connects a number of central Sudanese cities - such as El Obeid and capital Khartoum - to Darfur. Around 350km to its west is El Fasher, the only major city in Darfur not yet controlled by the RSF and the scene of some of the most intense fighting of recent months.
The attack on Nahud comes as the RSF seeks to tighten a months-long siege on El Fasher and secure its control of the Darfur region. Numerous clips over the last week showed it engaging in gunfights around El Fasher and celebrating in front of burned out vehicles.
Footage also showed its fighters in what remains of the Médecins Sans Frontières hospital in the Zamzam displacement camp, which the group largely razed after taking control of it last month.
The UN said on Thursday that at least 542 civilians were confirmed to have been killed in and around El Fasher in just the last three weeks, though added that the actual death toll is likely to be much higher.
FOOTAGE & IMAGES
The weekly dispatch features the latest developments, first-hand testimony, footage, photos, stats and analysis on Sudan. We can connect you with voices from the ground, experts and survivors of the war. Get in touch on +44 7514 796 678 or sudan@avaaz.org.
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