A delegation from the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) has provided reassurances to South Sudanese refugees in the Sudanese capital, Khartoum, regarding their protection.
On Tuesday, the RSF’s delegation paid a visit to the Naivasha refugee camp in the capital’s twin city of Omdurman, which currently shelters approximately 15,000 South Sudanese refugees. These refugees have been enduring significant hardships, including water and communication network disruptions, since the outbreak of the conflict.
Major Naeem Abdullah, the leader of the RSF delegation, inspected the camp’s service levels and offered various forms of assistance to the camp’s residents.
“We came to inspect your situation here at the camp because the RSF commander is concerned to ensure your safety,” he said.
Commander Abdullah, while addressing the South Sudanese refugees, affirmed that the visit was by the instructions from RSF commander Lieutenant General Mohammed Hamdan Dagalo. He further said the objective was to assess the camp’s conditions and provide support to ensure the refugees’ safety.
Meanwhile, Philip Lam, the representative of the South Sudanese refugees in the camp, expressed gratitude to the Rapid Support Forces for their concern for their well-being.
Lam highlighted the prolonged suffering the refugees had endured, with issues like water shortages, electricity disruptions, and the absence of other essential services. “There is no water, electricity, and other basic services,” Lam revealed.
The RSF and the Sudanese military have been locked in fighting for control of Sudan since mid-April.
Since the outbreak of the war, the greater Khartoum area — the cities of Khartoum, Omdurman, and Khartoum North — has become a battleground, with air strikes and shelling taking place in densely populated areas.
There have been reports of rape and other human rights violations committed against civilians by the two warring parties in Khartoum and Darfur.
The violations have prompted the United Nations Human Rights Council to set up an independent fact-finding mission to probe alleged rights abuses in Sudan’s brutal fighting.