Shelling, Looting in Sudan’s Capital as Military Factions Battle for Eighth Week 

Smoke billows behind buildings from a reported fire in Khartoum, on June 5, 2023, as fighting continues between two warring generals. (AFP)
Smoke billows behind buildings from a reported fire in Khartoum, on June 5, 2023, as fighting continues between two warring generals. (AFP)
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Shelling, Looting in Sudan’s Capital as Military Factions Battle for Eighth Week 

Smoke billows behind buildings from a reported fire in Khartoum, on June 5, 2023, as fighting continues between two warring generals. (AFP)
Smoke billows behind buildings from a reported fire in Khartoum, on June 5, 2023, as fighting continues between two warring generals. (AFP)

Shelling hit western areas of Sudan's capital on Monday morning after rival military factions fought through the night, residents said, with reports of deepening lawlessness in Khartoum and in the western region of Darfur.

Fighting between the army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), who have been battling each other for more than seven weeks, intensified after the expiry late on Saturday of a ceasefire deal brokered by Saudi Arabia and the US.

The conflict has uprooted more than 1.2 million people within Sudan and sent about 400,000 fleeing into neighboring countries, inflicting heavy damage on the capital where remaining residents are at the mercy of battles, air strikes and lawlessness.

Late on Sunday, residents reported intense fighting across the three cities that make up the nation's wider capital - Khartoum, Omdurman and Bahri - and smoke could be seen rising from several areas early on Monday.

"The neighborhood where we live in the center of Omdurman is looted publicly on a daily basis without anyone intervening to prevent it, with clashes and shelling continuing around us," said 37-year-old resident Mohamed Saleh.

In Khartoum East district, RSF troops who have spread out in neighborhoods across the capital were in full control and were looting extensively, said Waleed Adam, a resident of the area.

"You see them right in front of you, taking cars, money, gold - whatever they can get their hands on," he told Reuters by phone. "I guess it's just a matter of time until they come to my street."

The RSF says it has been working to protect civilians by arresting looters.

The war has also triggered unrest in Darfur in Sudan's far west, a region that was already suffering from mass displacement due to earlier conflict.

In recent days at least 40 people were killed and dozens more were wounded in Kutum in North Darfur State, according to activists who monitor the region. Residents have also reported widespread looting and insecurity in the area.

On Monday, the RSF released a video purporting to show that they had taken over the army headquarters in Kutum, a commercial hub and one of the larger towns in the state.

There was no immediate comment from the army, which had denied on Sunday that the RSF had taken the town.

There have been long communication blackouts in parts of Darfur, where aid groups have found it especially complicated to bring in new humanitarian supplies.

In El Obeid, a city 360 km (220 miles) southwest of Khartoum and on a key route from the capital to Darfur, residents reported large deployments of RSF forces and the closure of some roads.

Recent days have brought the first showers of the year in Khartoum, marking the start of a rainy season likely to complicate a relief effort already hampered by bureaucratic delays and logistical challenges.



US Defers Removal of Some Lebanese, Citing Israel-Hezbollah Tensions

Smoke billows from a site targeted by Lebanon's Hezbollah, along the northern Israeli border with Lebanon on July 25, 2024, amid ongoing cross-border clashes between Israeli troops and Hezbollah fighters. (AFP)
Smoke billows from a site targeted by Lebanon's Hezbollah, along the northern Israeli border with Lebanon on July 25, 2024, amid ongoing cross-border clashes between Israeli troops and Hezbollah fighters. (AFP)
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US Defers Removal of Some Lebanese, Citing Israel-Hezbollah Tensions

Smoke billows from a site targeted by Lebanon's Hezbollah, along the northern Israeli border with Lebanon on July 25, 2024, amid ongoing cross-border clashes between Israeli troops and Hezbollah fighters. (AFP)
Smoke billows from a site targeted by Lebanon's Hezbollah, along the northern Israeli border with Lebanon on July 25, 2024, amid ongoing cross-border clashes between Israeli troops and Hezbollah fighters. (AFP)

The United States is deferring the removal of certain Lebanese citizens from the country, President Joe Biden said on Friday, citing humanitarian conditions in southern Lebanon amid tensions between Israel and Hezbollah.

The deferred designation, which lasts 18 months, allows Lebanese citizens to remain in the country with the right to work, according to a memorandum Biden sent to the Department of Homeland Security.

"Humanitarian conditions in southern Lebanon have significantly deteriorated due to tensions between Hezbollah and Israel," Biden said in the memo.

"While I remain focused on de-escalating the situation and improving humanitarian conditions, many civilians remain in danger; therefore, I am directing the deferral of removal of certain Lebanese nationals who are present in the United States."

Israel and Iran-backed Hezbollah have been trading fire since Hezbollah announced a "support front" with Palestinians shortly after its ally Hamas attacked southern Israeli border communities on Oct. 7, triggering Israel's military assault in Gaza.

The fighting in Lebanon has killed more than 100 civilians and more than 300 Hezbollah fighters, according to a Reuters tally, and led to levels of destruction in Lebanese border towns and villages not seen since the 2006 Israel-Lebanon war.

On the Israeli side, 10 Israeli civilians, a foreign agricultural worker and 20 Israeli soldiers have been killed. Tens of thousands have been evacuated from both sides of the border.