Dozens Killed, Injured in Shelling on Residential Area in Sudan’s El Fasher

Destruction following the shelling in El Fasher, Sudan. (Social media)
Destruction following the shelling in El Fasher, Sudan. (Social media)
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Dozens Killed, Injured in Shelling on Residential Area in Sudan’s El Fasher

Destruction following the shelling in El Fasher, Sudan. (Social media)
Destruction following the shelling in El Fasher, Sudan. (Social media)

Artillery shelling renewed on Tuesday in El Fasher, the capital of North Darfur in western Sudan, targeting hospitals, displacement camps, and residential areas, local sources reported.

The attack resulted in several civilian casualties and dozens of injuries.

Earlier in the morning, Sudanese army warplanes carried out an airstrike on positions held by the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) in the city’s eastern neighborhoods.

The “El Fasher Resistance Committees Coordination” stated on Facebook that the city also came under artillery fire from the RSF. Preliminary reports said at least two people were killed and dozens wounded.

The escalation comes after more than two weeks of reduced fighting between the army, its allied armed groups, and the RSF.

Residents of El Fasher told Asharq Al-Awsat that more people are fleeing the city due to indiscriminate shelling and a blockade that has caused prices to soar and shut down medical services.

The city faces severe shortages of drinking water and food, forcing thousands to seek safer areas.

Sources reported that large military reinforcements have arrived to support the joint forces defending El Fasher against RSF attempts to capture the city and take control of the western region.

In recent weeks, the RSF advanced into the city during heavy fighting and dug defensive trenches near the army's 6th Infantry Division headquarters.

The RSF claimed on X that more than 30 civilians were killed and dozens injured in an army airstrike on a town east of El Fasher.

Official figures show that more than 800 civilians have been killed or injured in El Fasher, which has been engulfed in the conflict between the army and RSF for four months.

The war in Sudan has led to the worst food crisis in the country’s history, with over half of the population suffering from severe hunger.

Millions are facing emergency levels of food insecurity, and over 755,000 people are in catastrophic conditions in Greater Darfur, South and North Kordofan, Blue Nile, Gezira, and Khartoum.

According to the United Nations and humanitarian partners, more than 188,000 people have been killed and over 33,000 injured since the conflict began in April 2023.

Over 10 million people have been displaced, including more than 5 million children, with over 2 million seeking refuge in neighboring countries.



Blinken Lays Out Post-war Gaza Plan to Be Handed to Trump Team

 US Secretary of State Antony Blinken speaks at the Atlantic Council in Washington, DC, on January 14, 2025. (AFP)
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken speaks at the Atlantic Council in Washington, DC, on January 14, 2025. (AFP)
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Blinken Lays Out Post-war Gaza Plan to Be Handed to Trump Team

 US Secretary of State Antony Blinken speaks at the Atlantic Council in Washington, DC, on January 14, 2025. (AFP)
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken speaks at the Atlantic Council in Washington, DC, on January 14, 2025. (AFP)

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Tuesday laid out plans for the post-war management of Gaza, saying the outgoing Biden administration would hand over the roadmap to President-elect Donald Trump's team to pick up if a ceasefire deal is reached.

Speaking at the Atlantic Council in Washington in his final days as the US top diplomat, Blinken said Washington envisioned a reformed Palestinian Authority leading Gaza and inviting international partners to help establish and run an interim administration for the enclave.

A security force would be formed from forces from partner nations and vetted Palestinian personnel, Blinken said during his speech, which was repeatedly interrupted by protesters who accused him of supporting genocide by Israel against Palestinians in Gaza, which Israel denies.

He was speaking as negotiators met in Qatar hoping to finalize a plan to end the war in Gaza after 15 months of conflict that has upended the Middle East.

"For many months, we've been working intensely with our partners to develop a detailed post-conflict plan that would allow Israel to fully withdraw from Gaza, prevent Hamas from filling back in, and provide for Gaza's governance, security and reconstruction," Blinken said.

Trump and his incoming team have not said whether they would implement the plan.

Blinken said a post-conflict plan and a "credible political horizon for Palestinians" was needed to ensure that Hamas does not re-emerge.

The United States had repeatedly warned Israel that Hamas could not be defeated by a military campaign alone, he said. "We assess that Hamas has recruited almost as many new fighters as it has lost. That is a recipe for an enduring insurgency and perpetual war."

PROTESTERS

Blinken's remarks were interrupted three times by protesters, who echoed accusations that the Biden administration was complicit in crimes committed by Israel in the war.

Blinken has denied Israel's actions amount to genocide and says he has pushed Israel to do more to protect civilians and to facilitate humanitarian aid into Gaza.

Israel launched its assault after Hamas-led fighters stormed across its borders on Oct. 7, 2023, killing 1,200 people and taking more than 250 hostages, according to Israeli tallies.

Israel's aerial and ground campaign has killed more than 46,000 Palestinians, according to the local health ministry, drawing accusations of genocide in a World Court case brought by South Africa and of war crimes and crimes against humanity at the International Criminal Court. Israel denies the allegations.

The assault has displaced nearly all of Gaza's 2.3 million population and drawn the concern of the world’s main hunger monitor.

"You will forever be known as bloody Blinken, secretary of genocide," one protester shouted before being led out of the event.

Blinken remained calm, telling one heckler: "I respect your views. Please allow me to share mine," before resuming his remarks.

Blinken said US officials had debated "vigorously" the Biden administration's response to the war, a reference to a slew of resignations by officials in his State Department who have criticized the policy to continue providing arms and diplomatic cover to Israel.

Others felt Washington had held Israel back from inflicting greater damage on Iran and its proxies, he said.

"It is crucial to ask questions like these, which will be studied for years to come," he said. "I wish I could stand here today and tell you with certainty that we got every decision right. I cannot."