The US is deeply concerned by reports that the Sudanese paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) have intensified shelling in Nyala, South Darfur and Karari, Omdurman, State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller said on Wednesday.
The US is aware of reports the RSF and Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) are fighting within the city of Nyala and that the RSF may have encircled the city in preparation for an assault, potentially depriving civilians of the ability to flee to safety, he added in a statement.
Fighting between the army and RSF erupted on April 15 over tensions linked to a planned transition to civilian rule. It has devastated the capital Khartoum and sparked ethnically driven attacks in Darfur.
The US called on the RSF to immediately cease shelling of civilian neighborhoods and to protect civilians, Miller said.
“This reckless war, which began more than six months ago, has resulted in civilian deaths, the displacement of millions, and immense suffering that will affect generations of Sudanese,” he warned.
“Women and children are bearing the intolerable brunt of this conflict.”
“There is no acceptable military solution to this conflict – ‘victory’ by either side would exact an intolerable toll on the Sudanese people and their nation,” he continued.
“The United States reiterates its call for the RSF and SAF to immediately stop the fighting and return to talks toward a negotiated exit from this conflict,” he urged.
“The United States reminds the RSF and SAF of their commitments under the May 11 Jeddah Declaration of Principles to Protect the Civilians of Sudan, including by allowing unhindered humanitarian access, protecting civilians and their human rights, and upholding international humanitarian law and international human rights law,” he said.
“It is time for this conflict and the suffering of the Sudanese people to end,” Miller stated.
