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RSF Attack on Sudan Village Kills Dozens

Smoke rises in Sudanese city amid fighting between the army and Rapid Support Forces. (AP)
Smoke rises in Sudanese city amid fighting between the army and Rapid Support Forces. (AP)
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RSF Attack on Sudan Village Kills Dozens

Smoke rises in Sudanese city amid fighting between the army and Rapid Support Forces. (AP)
Smoke rises in Sudanese city amid fighting between the army and Rapid Support Forces. (AP)

The Rapid Support Forces (RSF) have killed dozens of people in an attack on a village south of the capital Khartoum, a local doctors' committee said Sunday.

RSF carried out a "massacre" in "the village of Um Adam" 150 kilometers (93 miles) south of the city Saturday, the Sudan Doctors Committee said in a statement.

Sudan's war between the military, under army chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, and the RSF, commanded by his former deputy Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, began last April 15.

Many thousands of people have been killed, including up to 15,000 in a single town in the war-ravaged Darfur region, according to United Nations experts.

The war has also displaced more than 8.5 million people, practically destroyed Sudan's already fragile infrastructure and pushed the country to the brink of famine.

Saturday's attack "resulted in the killing (of) at least 28 innocent villagers and more than 240 people wounded," the committee said.

It added that "there are a number of dead and wounded in the village that we were not able to count" due to the fighting and difficulty in reaching health facilities, according to AFP.

A local activists' committee had given a toll of 25 earlier in the day.

A medical source at the Manaqil hospital, 80 kilometers (about 50 miles) away, confirmed to AFP that they had "received 200 wounded, some of whom arrived too late."

"We're facing a shortage of blood, and we don't have enough medical personnel," he added.

More than 70 percent of Sudan's health facilities are out of service, according to the UN, while those remaining receive many times their capacity and have meager resources.

Both sides in the conflict have been accused of war crimes, including targeting civilians, indiscriminate shelling of residential areas and looting and obstructing aid.

Since taking over Al-Jazira state just south of Khartoum in December, the RSF has laid siege to and attacked entire villages such as Um Adam.

By March, at least 108 villages and settlements across the country had been set on fire and "partially or completely destroyed," the UK-based Center for Information Resilience has found.

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Arab World

Israeli Army Reaches Outskirts of Litani River in Southern Lebanon

An Israeli tank loaded onto a truck being transported to the border with southern Lebanon in the Upper Galilee (EPA)
An Israeli tank loaded onto a truck being transported to the border with southern Lebanon in the Upper Galilee (EPA)
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Israeli Army Reaches Outskirts of Litani River in Southern Lebanon

An Israeli tank loaded onto a truck being transported to the border with southern Lebanon in the Upper Galilee (EPA)
An Israeli tank loaded onto a truck being transported to the border with southern Lebanon in the Upper Galilee (EPA)

Israeli forces have launched their largest ground incursion into southern Lebanon since the conflict began, reaching the outskirts of the Litani River near Deirmimas.

They entered the town’s edges in an effort to separate Nabatieh from Marjayoun and prepare for an attack on the town of Taybeh from the west and north.

This move also aimed to neutralize Taybeh hill, which overlooks the Khiam plain, where Israel plans to extend its operations and capture the city of Khiam.

Lebanese media reported that Israel set up a checkpoint at the Deirmimas junction, cutting off Marjayoun from Nabatieh.

They also blocked the western entrance to Deirmimas near a fuel station using earth mounds, with Israeli military vehicles stationed there. Reports also said Israeli forces prevented UNIFIL and the Lebanese army from passing toward Marjayoun.

Lebanese sources following the battle in the south reported that Israeli forces advanced five kilometers west from the town of Kfar Kila, moving through olive groves. This advance took advantage of the absence of Hezbollah fighters in Christian areas like Qlayaa, Bir al-Muluk, and Deirmimas.

The sources told Asharq Al-Awsat that this allowed Israeli forces to reach the outskirts of the Litani River for the first time since 2006, cutting off Nabatieh from Marjayoun. Israeli artillery had previously targeted this route several times, and drones had carried out strikes there.

Israel supported its ground advance with heavy artillery fire. Lebanese security sources said Israeli artillery targeted hills overlooking Deirmimas throughout Thursday night into Friday, hitting locations like Beaufort Castle, Arnoun, Yihmour, Wadi Zawtar, and Deir Siryan.

This fire typically provides cover for infantry advances. The sources also confirmed that Israeli ground movements were backed by airstrikes and drones for added security.

They speculated the advance followed a route from Kfar Kila through Tall al-Nahas and Bir al-Muluk toward Deirmimas, which is almost empty of residents and has no Hezbollah presence.

Hezbollah fired rockets at Israeli forces in the area, with three statements confirming the targeting of Israeli positions and vehicles near Deirmimas.

Media reports mentioned multiple rocket strikes on Israeli targets in Khiam and near Tall al-Nahas, as well as a guided missile attack on Israeli movements near oil groves close to the Marqos station at Deirmimas’ edge.

A photo shared by Lebanese media showed an Israeli tank behind an exposed hill east of Qlayaa, protected from the west and north. To the south, Israeli forces entered the town of Deirmimas, which overlooks the position.

Military expert Mustafa Asaad said the image, showing a bulldozer behind a tank at the Qlayaa-Marjayoun-Deirmimas junction, suggests that infantry units secured the area—either on foot or in fast vehicles—before entering Deirmimas.

The town’s mayor confirmed to local media that Israeli forces made a “small incursion” into Deirmimas, advancing through olive groves from Kfar Kila.

Hezbollah has stated it does not have military positions in Christian or Druze areas in southern Lebanon, as these communities oppose its presence. Sources close to Hezbollah say this is due to political reasons and security concerns.