Sudan: clashes in vicinity of military industries complex in Khartoum

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: Agencies
8 Jun 2023 14:39

Clashes between the Sudanese army and the Rapid Support Forces, erupt around the Yarmouk Military Industries Complex in southern Khartoum while the evacuation of hundreds of children from the local orphanage remains underway.

Smoke rises over Khartoum, Sudan, Wednesday, June 7, 2023 (AP)

Clashes between the Sudanese army and the Rapid Support forces are taking place in the vicinity of a military industries complex in the southern region of Khartoum after the RSF declared control of the region.

Local witnesses said they heard "sounds of gunfire" as clashes in the surrounding area of the Yarmouk complex erupted.

On Wednesday, the RSF announced in a statement "full control of the Yarmouk complex and ammunition warehouses", noting that "army soldiers fled, leaving behind quantities of military materiel and vehicles."

At dawn, on Thursday, witnesses spoke of an enormous explosion and a fire that erupted in an oil storage tank at the Tree Oil and Gas Facility, near the Yarmouk Complex.

The immediate cause of the fire has not been identified, but witnesses have confirmed that clashes have been ongoing in the facility's perimeter for more than 48 hours, noting that clouds of smoke, visible from 10km away, continue to rise today.

Hundreds of children evacuated from Khartoum's Maygoma orphanage

The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) has participated in the evacuation of 280 children and 70 caregivers from the Maygoma orphanage in Khartoum. The orphanage has been damaged due to the ongoing clashes and its residents needed to be transferred to a safe location.

Unfortunately, over the past two months, it was reported that more than 70 infants and children passed away plagued by hunger and disease.

A team from ICRC facilitated, on Wednesday, the evacuation of the orphanage's residents. The children at the orphanage ranged from one-month-old babies to 15 years old teenagers. All the residents of the orphanage have been transferred to the city of Wade Madani located about 200 kilometers from Khartoum.

The evacuation was conducted following a request from the Ministry of Social Development and in close coordination with the Sudanese Ministry of Health.

As a "neutral mediator", the ICRC obtained the necessary security assurances from the parties to the conflict to ensure the safe passage of children and orphanage workers.