What is happening in Sudan? Advisory issued for Indians amid gunfire, clashes in capital Khartoum

A sustained firing was reported in Sudan's capital Khartoum on Saturday morning amid tensions between the military and paramilitary forces. The firing was heard in several areas, including central Khartoum and the neighbourhood of Bahri.

Tensions between the military and the country's powerful paramilitary, Rapid Support Forces (RSF), have escalated in recent months. This led to a delay in the signing of an internationally backed deal with political parties to revive the country's democratic transition. Amid this, Indian Embassy in Sudan issued an advisory to its citizens, asking them to stay indoors and stop venturing outside.

NOTICE TO ALL INDIANS

IN VIEW OF REPORTED FIRINGS AND CLASHES, ALL INDIANS ARE ADVISED TO TAKE UTMOST PRECAUTIONS, STAY INDOORS AND STOP VENTURING OUTSIDE WITH IMMEDIATE EFFECT. PLEASE ALSO STAY CALM AND WAIT FOR UPDATES.

— India in Sudan (@EoI_Khartoum) April 15, 2023

Earlier, in a statement, the RSF accused the army of attacking its forces at one of its bases in South Khartoum. The military used light and heavy weapons in the attack, it said.

Current tensions between the army and the paramilitary stem from a disagreement over how the RSF should be integrated into the military and what authority should oversee the process. The merger is a key condition of Sudan's unsigned transition agreement.

However, the army-RSF rivalry dates back to the rule of autocratic President Omar al-Bashir, who was ousted in 2019. Under the former president, the paramilitary force, led by powerful Gen. Mohammed Hamdan Dagalo, grew out of former militias known as the Janjaweed that carried out a brutal crackdown in Sudan's Darfur region during the decades of conflict there.

(With inputs from PTI)

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