Sudan: Clashes between SAF and RSF - Flash Update No. 13 (21 May 2023)[EN/AR]

HIGHLIGHTS

• Fighting between the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) continues into its second month.

• Conflict has escalated in Ag Geneina, West Darfur, displacing at least 85,000 people and leaving civilians without access to health care, water and basic supplies.

• A seven-day Agreement on a Short-Term Ceasefire and Humanitarian Arrangements was signed by the parties on 20 May and will enter into force after 48 hours.

• At least 11 attacks against humanitarian premises in Khartoum, and four new attacks against health facilities, have been reported since the signing of the Jeddah Declaration.

• Over 1 million people have been displaced since the conflict began on 15 April and have fled to safer locations inside and outside the country.

• The revised Humanitarian Response Plan for Sudan calls for $2.6 billion to provide life-saving assistance to 18.1 million people in the country.

• Over 300,000 people have been reached with food assistance and humanitarian partners are ramping-up their response, including in Darfur.

SITUATION OVERVIEW

Representatives of the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) signed an Agreement on a Short-Term Ceasefire and Humanitarian Arrangements in Jeddah, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, on 20 May. The shortterm ceasefire, which enters into force 48 hours after the signing, shall remain in effect for seven days and may be extended with the agreement of both parties. Under the Agreement, the parties agreed to facilitate the delivery and distribution of humanitarian assistance, restore essential services and withdraw forces from hospitals and essential public facilities. The parties also agreed to facilitate the safe passage of humanitarian actors and commodities, allowing goods to flow unimpeded from ports of entry to populations in need. The compliance and adherence to the Agreement will be monitored by a Monitoring and Coordination Committee comprised of representatives of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the United States of America, which are the facilitators to the Agreement, and representatives of the parties.

Clashes between SAF and RSF that broke out on 15 April 2023 have continued for five consecutive weeks, especially in and around Khartoum, as of 20 May. At least 705 people have been killed and 5,287 injured, according to the Federal Ministry of Health (FMoH), as of 16 May.

Renewed clashes have been reported in Zalingei, Central Darfur, and Nyala, South Darfur, while fighting has escalated in Ag Geneina, the capital of West Darfur. All 86 gathering sites for displaced people throughout Ag Geneina have reportedly been burnt to the ground, forcing over 85,000 people into secondary displacement in neighbourhoods in the northern parts of the town. Many are sheltering with relatives and friends, while others are taking refuge in public buildings or staying in the streets. All health facilities remain out of service in Ag Geneina town and the Preliminary Committee of the Sudanese Doctors Syndicate (PCSDS) reported difficulty reaching the wounded to provide them with assistance or to remove dead bodies. No support beyond first aid is available for the increasing number of survivors of sexual violence that are being reported. All markets in the town have reportedly been destroyed, leaving civilians unable to buy food and other basic items, while the municipal electricity system is not operating, rendering most water points non-functional.

Water points have also been targeted in attacks by different groups, depriving civilians of access to water. The few remaining water points that are able to operate on solar power are in need of maintenance and are inaccessible due to ongoing violence. Several premises of humanitarian organizations have been attacked and looted, severely limiting civilians’ access to assistance and health services, according to the INGO Forum.

Over 1 million people have been displaced since the conflict began on 15 April, fleeing to safer locations inside and outside Sudan. Over 843,100 are internally displaced within Sudan, according to the International Organization for Migration’s Displacement Tracking Matrix (IOM DTM) as of 16 May. The states hosting the highest numbers of newly displaced people are White Nile (which hosts 25.2 per cent of all displaced people), West Darfur (18.6 per cent), River Nile (13.8 per cent) and Northern (13.34 per cent) states. The highest number of displaced people are originally from Khartoum (nearly 650,000 people or 72 per cent of the total internally displaced), followed by West Darfur (19 per cent), South Darfur (5.6 per cent), North Darfur (2.2 per cent), North Kordofan (nearly 1 per cent) and Central Darfur (0.21 per cent), according to IOM. In addition, over 248,000 people have crossed borders into neighbouring countries—Central African Republic, Chad, Egypt, Ethiopia and South Sudan—, according to the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR).
Millions of people remain without access to even the most basic of health services. At least 34 attacks on health care, including 21 which have impacted health facilities, and 10 that have impacted health personnel, have been verified by the World Health Organization (WHO) since 15 April. Some 67 per cent (59 out of 88) of the main hospitals in areas of conflict were out of service as of 9 May, according to the Committee of Sudan Doctor’s Trade Union, and just 29 hospitals were either fully or partially functioning, with some providing first aid services only. These hospitals are vulnerable to being shut down due to a lack of medical personnel, medical supplies, water and electricity. Meanwhile, health services have resumed in the Nyala Teaching Hospital (South Darfur), Bashair Hospital in Khartoum, and Damaan Hospital in Al Obeid (North Kordofan).

Since the signing of the Jeddah Declaration of Commitment on 11 May, looting of humanitarian organizations’ premises and warehouses and destruction of supplier's premises has continued. At least 11 attacks against humanitarian premises in Khartoum, and 4 new attacks against health facilities, have been reported since the signing. Following the Declaration of Commitment, the Sudanese Council of Ministers announced that the airports of Port Sudan, Wadi Seidna and Khartoum International Airports have been designated as entry points for humanitarian aid, although the Khartoum International Airport, Sudan's main airport, remains out of service, and humanitarian flights have to date only arrived in Port Sudan. The Sudanese Civil Aviation Authority has extend airspace closure to all air traffic until 31 May 2023, except for humanitarian relief and evacuation flights.