Civilian Casualties Rise as Paramilitary Shelling Hits Omdurman Amidst Ongoing Conflict
Three killed, including two children, in recent artillery attacks by Rapid Support Forces in Sudan's Omdurman.
On March 23, 2025, three civilians, including two children, were killed in an artillery attack attributed to the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) in Omdurman, a city that is part of Sudan’s capital, Khartoum.
Eyewitnesses reported that seven rounds of shelling struck residential neighborhoods that are under the control of the Sudanese army, which has recently regained significant ground in the ongoing conflict.
A medical source from Al-Nao hospital, one of the few remaining operational health facilities in the area, disclosed that two children and a woman were among the fatalities, with an additional eight individuals reported to have sustained injuries.
The medical source requested anonymity for safety reasons.
The RSF has engaged in combat with Sudan’s regular army since April 2023, a conflict that has resulted in tens of thousands of deaths, displaced over 12 million people, and triggered a severe humanitarian crisis in the region.
In the latest developments, the Sudanese army and its allied groups announced on March 21 that they had successfully recaptured key areas of central Khartoum, including the presidential palace.
This action was part of a broader military operation aimed at dislodging the RSF from vital administrative and financial districts of the city.
The Sudanese military further claimed to have taken control of several important state institutions previously dominated by the paramilitary forces, including the central bank and state intelligence headquarters.
Despite these advances, RSF fighters continue to maintain positions in certain areas of central Khartoum, notably around the airport, as well as in the southern and western parts of the capital.
The continuing presence of RSF troops in western Omdurman has led to regular shelling of civilian areas, with a notable attack in February 2025, which resulted in more than 50 casualties at a busy market.
The persistent conflict has seen Sudan effectively divided into two regions: the eastern and northern territories under army control, while the west, particularly the region of Darfur, remains largely under RSF influence, complicating prospects for peace and stability in the country.
Eyewitnesses reported that seven rounds of shelling struck residential neighborhoods that are under the control of the Sudanese army, which has recently regained significant ground in the ongoing conflict.
A medical source from Al-Nao hospital, one of the few remaining operational health facilities in the area, disclosed that two children and a woman were among the fatalities, with an additional eight individuals reported to have sustained injuries.
The medical source requested anonymity for safety reasons.
The RSF has engaged in combat with Sudan’s regular army since April 2023, a conflict that has resulted in tens of thousands of deaths, displaced over 12 million people, and triggered a severe humanitarian crisis in the region.
In the latest developments, the Sudanese army and its allied groups announced on March 21 that they had successfully recaptured key areas of central Khartoum, including the presidential palace.
This action was part of a broader military operation aimed at dislodging the RSF from vital administrative and financial districts of the city.
The Sudanese military further claimed to have taken control of several important state institutions previously dominated by the paramilitary forces, including the central bank and state intelligence headquarters.
Despite these advances, RSF fighters continue to maintain positions in certain areas of central Khartoum, notably around the airport, as well as in the southern and western parts of the capital.
The continuing presence of RSF troops in western Omdurman has led to regular shelling of civilian areas, with a notable attack in February 2025, which resulted in more than 50 casualties at a busy market.
The persistent conflict has seen Sudan effectively divided into two regions: the eastern and northern territories under army control, while the west, particularly the region of Darfur, remains largely under RSF influence, complicating prospects for peace and stability in the country.