Intensified military clashes and artillery shelling between the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) resumed on Wednesday in the northwest villages of the Al-Madina Arab area in Sudan’s Al-Jazeera state.

A tour by Radio Tamazuj around the region revealed clashes in Kambu Wad Humair, a slum housing area for agricultural workers, as well as the villages of Al-Shibeek and An-Nuwaylah, where SAF and RSF exchanged artillery fire. 

Warplanes were also seen bombing RSF gatherings in the Kambu Wad Humair area, resulting in several houses being set on fire, with the exact number of casualties remaining unconfirmed.

In another escalation, SAF repelled a group of RSF forces that infiltrated the village of Al-Shibeek and assassinated a civilian. Residents of the northwestern villages of the Al-Madina Arab emphasize the deterioration of the security situation due to mutual shelling by the two sides. 

Abdullah Mubarak, a resident of the Wad Rea'a locality, told Radio Tamazuj that the fighting has brought misery to their lives. 

“Our area is turning into a war zone and place of armed conflict,” he lamented. “We keep hearing the sounds of shells and explosions and there has been a significant deterioration in living conditions due to the lack of electricity, water, communications, banking services, and food shortages, making life increasingly difficult.”

Another resident, Bashir Al-Sheikh, confirmed the fears of the inhabitants of the areas where clashes are taking place due to the deterioration of the security situation. 

“The armed conflict has had a significantly negative impact on daily life, with all services suspended, and electricity and communications cut off, and the situation worsening,” he stated.