10+ dead following airstrikes on East Darfur

21/02/2024 12:02 ED DAEIN

Still from footage showing the aftermath of airstrikes on Ed Daein, East Darfur, on February 20 (Source: Darfur Network for Human Rights)

At least 10 people, including an entire family, were killed following a raid by the Sudanese Air Forces on Ed Daein, the capital of East Darfur, yesterday.

Omda Mousa Eisa told Dabanga that the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) bombarded five locations in Ed Daein, causing more than 10 deaths and numerous injuries.

Among the affected neighborhoods were El Sikka Hadid, where two people were killed and several others injured; El Zeriba El Gadima, where the bombing ignited a stockpile of firewood and several shops; El Tadamon, where several homes were struck, leading to the death of a family of six and another person in a neighboring house; Um Waragat, 18 kilometers west of Ed Daein, and the area south of the former SAF garrison, according to Eisa.

In a statement issued yesterday, the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) strongly condemned the “indiscriminate aerial assault” committed by “the SAF and its terror-driven allies” on Ed Daein, which they say killed 11 people.

“The attack injured dozens of innocent civilians, destroyed hundreds of homes, and targeted essential infrastructure, including the Neem camp for the displaced, a hospital, and two water stations within the city”, the militia said, adding that the SAF used barrel bombs.

Condemnation

The East Darfur Network of National Organisations issued a statement yesterday decrying the SAF attack “targeting defenceless civilians” in Ed Daein. Kabeer Barsheem, a member of the network, told Dabanga that the airstrikes had “killed 15 people, set 30 homes ablaze, and resulted in the death of livestock”.

Sudan’s Emergency Lawyers also condemned the SAF airstrikes, highlighting that the nearest military area to the strike sites lay 30 kilometres away.

The lawyers underscored, in a statement yesterday, the civilian nature of the targeted areas, branding the “deliberate” targeting of densely populated area a “war crime and a blatant violation of international humanitarian law”.

The Darfur Bar Lawyers (DBA) and the Darfur Network for Human Rights (DNHR) similarly voiced their condemnation in separate statements, naming the victims of the bombarding, and denouncing the extensive damage to Neem camp and other areas.

Ed Daein has been under RSF rule since the paramilitary group took control of the 20th Infantry Division in Ed Daein, and the Adila and Abu Karinka garrisons in East Darfur, on November 21.