The UN humanitarian agency said Monday that more than 300 civilians were killed over two days of heavy violence in Sudan’s troubled Darfur region, as the country’s devastating civil war nears its second year. The killings occurred when Sudan’s widely feared paramilitary group launched assaults on two famine-stricken camps for displaced people in North Darfur and near its capital on Friday and Saturday. Initial reports indicated over 100 deaths, including 20 children and nine humanitarian workers, according to a U.N. official. Attacks on Darfur camps in Sudan leave at least 100 people dead However, on Monday, the U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said the civilian death toll was significantly higher, based on unnamed local sources. Due to the situation on the ground and communication barriers, the Associated Press has not been able to independently verify the figures. Sudan descended into conflict on April 15, 2023, following a breakdown in relations between the country's military and paramilitary leaders. What began in the capital, Khartoum, quickly spread across Sudan, including the vast Darfur region. Since then, the U.N. estimates at least 24,000 people have been killed, though rights groups claim the actual number is much greater. The latest attacks were carried out by the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), shortly after the Sudanese military reclaimed control of Khartoum in late March — a major symbolic achievement in the ongoing war. The conflict has created the world’s largest humanitarian and displacement crisis, making Sudan the only country currently facing famine, according to international organisations. U.N. spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said OCHA has received alarming reports of large numbers of casualties and extensive displacement in and around the Zamzam and Abu Shorouk camps, as well as in El Fasher, the capital of North Darfur. El Fasher is the only Darfur state capital still held by the military, while the RSF controls the others. North Darfur is one of five states in the region. Sudan accuses UAE of violating genocide convention by funding rebels “Initial figures from local sources suggest that over 300 civilians have died, including 10 humanitarian workers with the NGO Relief International, who were killed while running one of the few remaining health centres in Zamzam camp,” Dujarric said. This escalation comes just before a conference in London on Tuesday marking the anniversary of the war. Hosted by the UK, the EU, Germany, and France, the event is expected to gather more than 20 foreign ministers along with representatives from international organisations. Dujarric said the U.N. hopes the conference will lead to a unified push from Sudan’s neighbours and the broader international community to seek peace rather than continue fuelling the violence. Also on Tuesday, the U.N. Security Council is scheduled to hold emergency closed-door talks on Sudan. Meanwhile, the U.N.’s migration agency reported Monday that the RSF’s recent attacks in Zamzam camp have forced 60,000 to 80,000 families to flee within the last two days. Most remain within El Fasher, which is under military control but has been surrounded by the RSF for over a year. Mamadou Dian Balde, regional director for the U.N. refugee agency, told journalists during a video briefing that “widespread human rights violations” have driven nearly 13 million Sudanese from their homes — including 4 million who have crossed into neighbouring countries. While most fled to nearby nations, over 200,000 have reached Libya and about 70,000 have gone to Uganda, he added. Balde noted that the U.N. refugee agency’s $1.8 billion appeal to support displaced Sudanese and their host communities has only received 10% of the required funding. He warned that without more resources, people may start moving toward southern and eastern Africa, Gulf countries, and Europe. “We sincerely hope tomorrow’s London conference will generate stronger support for our Sudanese brothers and sisters who have been forced to flee,” Balde said.

Sudan’s military stated on Friday that it had regained control of the Republican Palace in Khartoum, the last heavily fortified stronghold of rival paramilitary forces in the capital, following nearly two years of conflict. Videos shared on social media depicted soldiers inside the palace, mentioning the 21st day of Ramadan, the Muslim holy fasting month, which coincided with Friday. In the footage, a Sudanese military officer, identified by his captain’s epaulettes, confirmed the troops’ presence within the compound. Can technology help more sexual assault survivors in South Sudan? The palace appeared to be partially destroyed, with soldiers stepping on shattered tiles. Armed with assault rifles and rocket-propelled grenade launchers, they chanted, “God is the greatest!” Khaled al-Aiser, Sudan’s information minister, announced in a post on the social platform X that the military had retaken the palace. “Today, the flag is raised, the palace is reclaimed, and the journey continues until complete victory,” he wrote. The Palace's Fall: A Symbolic and Strategic Shift The capture of the Republican Palace, a complex along the Nile River that served as the government's seat before the war and is featured on Sudanese banknotes and postage stamps, marks another significant military gain for Sudan’s armed forces. Under the leadership of army chief Gen. Abdel-Fattah Burhan, they have made steady progress in recent months. This development signifies that the rival Rapid Support Forces (RSF), led by Gen. Mohammed Hamdan Dagalo, have been largely expelled from Khartoum since the conflict erupted in April 2023. Sporadic gunfire was heard throughout the capital on Friday, though it was unclear whether it was due to ongoing clashes or celebratory gunfire. The RSF did not immediately acknowledge the loss, and the battle is unlikely to end, as the group and its allies still control territory in other parts of Sudan. On Thursday night, the RSF claimed it had seized al-Maliha, a strategically important desert city in North Darfur near the borders of Chad and Libya. Sudan’s military confirmed that clashes had occurred in the area but did not state that it had lost control of the city. Al-Maliha is located approximately 200 kilometers (125 miles) north of El Fasher, which remains under the control of the Sudanese military despite frequent RSF attacks. The head of the U.N. children’s agency has described the war as having created the world’s largest humanitarian crisis. More than 28,000 people have been killed, and millions have been displaced. Some families are resorting to eating grass as famine devastates parts of the country. Other estimates suggest an even higher death toll. The Republican Palace has historically been a centre of power, serving as the seat of government during Sudan’s British colonial period. It was also where Sudan’s independent flag was first raised in 1956. Before the conflict, it housed the offices of the president and other top officials. The Sudanese military has long targeted the palace and its surroundings, subjecting it to shelling and heavy fire. UN halts food aid to famine-hit Sudan displacement camp Sudan’s Long History of Unrest and Conflict Located in northeastern Africa, Sudan has faced persistent instability since a popular uprising led to the ousting of longtime autocratic President Omar al-Bashir in 2019. A brief transition to democracy was halted in 2021 when Burhan and Dagalo orchestrated a military coup. The RSF and Sudan’s military eventually turned against each other in 2023. Since early this year, Burhan’s forces—including Sudan’s military and allied militias—have advanced against the RSF, recapturing a crucial oil refinery north of Khartoum before launching attacks on RSF positions around the capital. The conflict has resulted in a growing number of civilian casualties. Al-Bashir faces charges at the International Criminal Court for orchestrating a genocidal campaign in the early 2000s in the western Darfur region, using the Janjaweed militia, the RSF’s precursor. The U.N. and human rights organisations accuse the RSF and allied Arab militias of targeting ethnic African communities in the current war. Both the Sudanese military and the RSF have been accused of human rights violations since the conflict began. Before leaving office, U.S. President Joe Biden’s administration declared that the RSF was committing genocide. Both sides deny any wrongdoing.

The fighting between Sudan’s military and a powerful paramilitary force has displaced more than 1.3 million people, the U.N. migration agency said Wednesday. The International Organization for Migration said the clashes have forced over 1 million people to leave their homes to safer areas inside Sudan. Some 320,000 others have fled to the neighboring countries of Egypt, South Sudan, Chad, Ethiopia, the Central African Republic and Libya. The fighting erupted on April 15 after months of escalating tensions between the military, led by Gen. Abdel-Fattah Burhan, and the Rapid Support Forces commanded by Gen. Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo. The conflict derailed Sudanese hopes of restoring the country's fragile transition to democracy, which was disrupted by a military coup led by the two generals in October 2021. The conflict has killed at least 863 civilians, including at least 190 children, and wounded more than 3,530 others, according to the most recent numbers from the Sudanese Doctors’ Syndicate — which mainly tracks civilian casualties. It has also pushed the East African country to near collapse, with urban areas in the capital, Khartoum, and its neighboring city of Omdurman turning into battlegrounds. Also read: Sudan military chief freezes bank accounts of rival armed group in battle for control of the nation Egypt is hosting the largest number of those who fled, with at least 132,360 people, followed by Chad with 80,000 and South Sudan with over 69,000, the agency added. All but one of Sudan’s 18 provinces experienced displacement, with Khartoum at the top of the list with around 70% of the total number of displaced people, according to the IOM’s Displacement Tracking Matrix. Sporadic fighting continued Wednesday in several areas, despite a cease-fire reached this week. Residents reported hearing gunshots and explosions in central Khartoum as well as areas close to military facilities in Omdurman. Both sides in the conflict Wednesday traded blame for violating the cease-fire. The weeklong cease-fire, which was brokered by the United States and Saudi Arabia, took effect Monday night. It was the latest international effort to push for humanitarian aid delivery to the conflict-torn country. A joint statement from the U.S. and Saudi Arabia late Tuesday warned that neither the Sudanese military nor the Rapid Support Forces observed the short-term cease-fire. “The Sudanese people continue to suffer as a result of this devastating conflict," the statement said. It called on both sides to “fully abide by their commitments" and to implement the temporary cease-fire to deliver urgently needed humanitarian relief. Earlier on Tuesday, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken cautioned both parties of possible sanctions if the latest cease-fire was not adhered to. But on Wednesday, White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby told reporters in Washington that the cease-fire has largely been holding, despite reports of sporadic fire in Khartoum and elsewhere. “Ultimately, it’s of course up to the Sudanese Armed Forces and the Rapid Support Forces to implement this thing.” Kirby said. “But in general, in the main, it appears to be holding. I want to caution you though, this is early, I mean, just went into effect yesterday afternoon. We have seen this movie before. So, we’re being pretty pragmatic as we look at it.” The fighting has exacerbated the already dire humanitarian conditions in Sudan. According to the U.N., the number of people who need assistance this year has increased by 57% to reach 24.7 million people, more than half the country’s population. The international body said it would need $2.6 billion to provide them with much-needed humanitarian assistance. The U.N. special envoy for sexual violence Pramila Patten, meanwhile, said Wednesday she is “is gravely concerned” about reports of sexual attacks against women. “There are strong indications that it is parties to the conflict who have committed sexual violence, including rape, against women and girls,” she said in a statement. She said many of the sexual attacks apparently took place in residential areas in Khartoum, or while they were fleeing the fighting in the capital. Other attacks on women also took place in the western region of Darfur, where sexual violence against women has been consistently reported over the past two decades, she said. She called for investigations into the allegations and urged all parties to take immediate measures against suspects, including suspending or removing them from the ranks.

Sudan’s military seized power Monday, dissolving the transitional government hours after troops arrested the prime minister, and thousands flooded the streets to protest the coup that threatened the country’s shaky progress toward democracy. Security forces opened fire on some of them, and three protesters were killed, according to the Sudan Doctors’ Committee, which also said 80 people were wounded. The takeover, which drew condemnation from the United Nations, the United States and the European Union, comes more than two years after protesters forced the ouster of longtime autocrat Omar al-Bashir and just weeks before the military was supposed to hand the leadership of the council that runs the country over to civilians. The U.N. Security Council scheduled an emergency closed meeting on the Sudan coup late Tuesday afternoon. The United States, United Kingdom, France, Ireland, Norway and Estonia requested the emergency consultations. Read:PM, officials detained, internet down in apparent Sudan coup After the early morning arrests of Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok and other senior officials, thousands demonstrated in the streets of the capital, Khartoum, and its twin city of Omdurman. They blocked streets and set fire to tires as security forces used tear gas to disperse them. As plumes of smoke rose, protesters could be heard chanting, “The people are stronger, stronger!” and “Retreat is not an option!” Social media video showed crowds crossing bridges over the Nile to the center of the capital. The U.S. Embassy warned that troops were blocking parts of the city and urged the military “to immediately cease violence.” Pro-democracy activist Dura Gambo said paramilitary forces chased protesters through some Khartoum neighborhoods. Records from a Khartoum hospital obtained by The Associated Press showed some people admitted with gunshot wounds. The head of the military, Gen. Abdel-Fattah Burhan, announced on national TV that he was dissolving the government and the Sovereign Council, a joint military and civilian body created soon after al-Bashir’s ouster to run the country. Burhan said quarrels among political factions prompted the military intervention. Tensions have been rising for weeks over the course and the pace of the transition to democracy in Sudan, a nation in Africa linked by language and culture to the Arab world. The general declared a state of emergency and said the military will appoint a technocratic government to lead the country to elections, set for July 2023. But he made clear the military will remain in charge. “The Armed Forces will continue completing the democratic transition until the handover of the country’s leadership to a civilian, elected government,” he said. He added that the constitution would be rewritten and a legislative body would be formed with the participation of “young men and women who made this revolution.” The Information Ministry, still loyal to the dissolved government, called his speech an “announcement of a seizure of power by military coup.” As darkness fell in Khartoum, barricades were still burning and occasional gunshots could be heard, said Volker Perthes, the U.N. special envoy for Sudan, at a briefing in New York. President Joe Biden was briefed on Sudan in the morning, said White House spokesperson Karine Jean-Pierre. She added that the U.S. was “deeply alarmed at reports of a military takeover" and called for the immediate release of the prime minister and other officials. “The actions today are in stark opposition to the will of the Sudanese people and their aspirations for peace, liberty and justice,” Jean-Pierre said. The Biden administration is suspending $700 million in emergency economic aid to Sudan that had been allocated to help the transition, said State Department spokesman Ned Price. He called it a “pause,” and urged the civilian-led government be immediately restored. U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres “strongly condemns the ongoing military coup d’état in Khartoum and all actions that could jeopardize Sudan’s political transition and stability,” said his spokesman, spokesman Stéphane Dujarric. Guterres also called for the release of the government officials, the spokesman said, as did the African Union. EU foreign affairs chief Joseph Borrell tweeted that he was following the events with the “utmost concern.” Read: 10 killed in South Sudan plane crash