In a written statement made by the spokesperson of the United Nations (UN) Secretariat General, it was stated that Guterres condemned the airstrike that killed 22 people in Sudan and expressed his condolences to the relatives of those who lost their lives.
“The Secretary-General remains deeply concerned that the ongoing war between the armed forces is potentially destabilizing the entire region, bringing Sudan to the brink of full-scale civil war,” the statement said.
In the ongoing clashes between the Sudanese army and the Rapid Support Forces (HDK), army warplanes launched an airstrike on the Dar es Salaam District of Umdurman, west of the capital, yesterday.
Eyewitnesses stated that at least 20 people, including women and children, lost their lives. In the statement made by HDK, it was recorded that at least 31 people were killed and dozens of civilians were injured in the attack.
Clashes between the army and the HDK in Sudan
The Sudanese army wanted the HDK, which it once supported but regarded as a threat because it acted as an independent and parallel army, to be fully integrated into the army within 2 years.
The war of words and tension, which started with the HDK’s declaration that it could accept this in a period spanning about 10 years after a civilian government, turned into an armed conflict between the parties in the capital Khartoum and various cities on the morning of April 15.
According to Sudan’s Ministry of Health and the United Nations, more than 3,000 people, mostly civilians, were killed and tens of thousands injured in the conflict. In addition, nearly 3 million people were displaced inside and outside the country.