苏丹多地发生武装冲突 中国使馆：目前没有中国公民在冲突中伤亡

当地时间4月15日，苏丹武装部队与快速支援部队在首都喀土穆等多地突发武装冲突。据苏丹医生委员会表示，目前苏丹多地发生的武装冲突已造成至少56人死亡，595人受伤。

冲突发生后，联合国安理会就苏丹局势发表声明表示，安理会成员对苏丹武装部队和快速支援部队之间的冲突深表关切，并对包括平民在内的人员伤亡表示遗憾。

苏丹快速支援部队是苏丹武装部队的组成部分，其领导人、苏丹主权委员会副主席穆罕默德·哈姆丹·达加洛与苏丹主权委员会主席兼武装部队总司令布尔汉之间政见不合，近日两派一直处于激烈对峙中。

当地时间16日，苏丹武装部队表示，已接管隶属于青尼罗河州及喀土穆州卡拉里地区的苏丹快速支援部队的主要弹药装备，其中武装部队第4步兵师收缴了35辆快速支援部队车辆。

苏丹媒体报道，目前首都喀土穆以北的麦罗维机场仍处于苏丹快速支援部队控制下，苏丹武装部队已包围该机场，麦罗维当地居民由于担心冲突扩大正在撤离该地。

苏丹当地媒体援引武装部队官员的话报道称，与快速支援部队的战斗预计将持续数天。

中国驻苏丹大使馆已发布紧急安全提示，提醒在苏中国公民和中资机构保持高度警惕，严格避免外出，加强安全防范。据使馆领保中心宋延青介绍，目前还没有接到中国公民伤亡报告，使馆正密切关注局势发展。

Cities across Sudan have been plunged into violence after fighting broke out between the military and the government's paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) on Saturday.

Here's an overview of the contexts under which the clashes erupted.

Post-al-Bashir Sudan

Sudan has been ruled by a transitional government mandated to transform the country into a democracy since military generals removed al-Bashir in April 2019 amidst a popular uprising.

Despite this, tensions between the military and civilian groups have characterized much of the post-al-Bashir period, leading to another military takeover in October 2021, that ousted the civilian leader from a power-sharing government, leaving a political vacuum to be filled through recent talks.

Who are the RSF?

The RSF, which is said to be 100,000 strong, is headed by General Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, commonly known as Hemedti. Hemedti rose from humble beginnings to become a rebel before eventually switching sides and amassing substantial wealth, with help from al-Bashir to build a business across several sectors.

The RSF evolved from so-called janjaweed militias used by al-Bashir's government to quell a rebellion in the Darfur region in the 2000s, and it was later used to muffle irregular migration and formally became an independent security force in 2017. It participated in both the 2019 and 2021 military takeovers.

Both the military and the RSF have sent troops to support the Saudi Arabia-led coalition's war in Yemen, which allowed Hemedti to develop ties with the Gulf states.

The group was accused of war crimes and crimes against humanity in Darfur. It has also been accused of participating in killing dozens of pro-democracy demonstrators before a peace deal was signed in 2019. Hemedti once apologized for crimes by the state against the Sudanese people. He did not elaborate.

Tensions with the military

The RSF's growing size has long been a source of concern for the military leadership, who, along with civilian representatives, have called for the group's integration into the regular armed forces. This issue has practically protracted the signing of an internationally backed deal, originally scheduled for April 1, that was supposed to move the country closer to democracy. 

Relations between the two forces have sharply deteriorated after Hemedti broke ranks with his military colleagues and joined forces with a civilian political alliance in the recent negotiations, which allows him to retain considerable influence even after the democratic transition.

The main point of contention at the negotiating table was over the interim leadership of the military before the RSF's integration. Al-Burhan wants the current leadership to remain in charge, while Hemedti insists on installing the incoming civilian head of state into the army's governing council. Both were sticking with their positions despite mediation attempts by Sudan's political figures.

Last month, while in talks with Sudan's political parties and the military, the RSF began redeploying units in Khartoum and elsewhere, moves which prompted the army to raise its alert. After fighting which both forces accuse one another of starting, the RSF on Saturday claimed to have taken over the presidential palace and other key sites in Khartoum as well as the northern city of Merowe, El Fasher and West Darfur state, assertions which were rejected by the military.

The fighting, if widened, risks plunging the country into a prolonged turmoil as it already grapples with economic collapse and tribal violence.