At least 24 people have been killed and about 100 wounded in fierce battles that broke out on Tuesday across Omdurman, the western part of Sudan's wider capital.
The war in the African country is approaching its third month with no end in sight. The casualties were reported by the Al Naw hospital in Omdurman.
The army, led by Gen Abdel Fattah Al Burhan, is reportedly trying to cut supply routes used by its paramilitary rivals, the Rapid Support Forces, led by Gen Mohamed Dagalo.
Violence between the two sides erupted in mid-April as the generals vied for control following a military coup that overturned an attempted power-sharing agreement with civilian-led political parties.
The war has now reignited simmering ethnic conflict across the country, including in Darfur, the scene of mass killings by government-linked militias about 20 years ago.
On Tuesday, the army launched air strikes and heavy artillery salvos, and there were ground battles in several parts of Omdurman, witnesses said.
The RSF quickly took control of large parts of the capital and has brought in extra fighters from Darfur and Kordofan as the conflict has deepened.
It transferred the reinforcements across bridges from Omdurman to Bahri and Khartoum, the other two cities that make up the wider capital across the confluence of the River Nile.
Residents said Tuesday's clashes in Omdurman were the heaviest in weeks.
As the army tried to gain ground, it was also fending off an RSF attack against a police base, they said.
“There has been very heavy bombardment for hours – air strikes, artillery and bullets. It is the first time for us that there have been continuous strikes at this level from every direction,” said Manahel Abbas, 33, a resident of Omdurman's Al Thawra district.
Saudi Arabia and the US brokered several ceasefire deals during talks in Jeddah. The talks were suspended last month after both sides breached the truces.
In a move that could escalate conflict in western Sudan, tribal leaders in South Darfur declared their allegiance to the RSF on Monday.
The RSF originated in Arab militias that helped to crush a rebellion in Darfur after 2003, before developing into a national and officially recognised force.
The biog
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Email sent to Uber team from chief executive Dara Khosrowshahi
From: Dara
To: Team@
Date: March 25, 2019 at 11:45pm PT
Subj: Accelerating in the Middle East
Five years ago, Uber launched in the Middle East. It was the start of an incredible journey, with millions of riders and drivers finding new ways to move and work in a dynamic region that’s become so important to Uber. Now Pakistan is one of our fastest-growing markets in the world, women are driving with Uber across Saudi Arabia, and we chose Cairo to launch our first Uber Bus product late last year.
Today we are taking the next step in this journey—well, it’s more like a leap, and a big one: in a few minutes, we’ll announce that we’ve agreed to acquire Careem. Importantly, we intend to operate Careem independently, under the leadership of co-founder and current CEO Mudassir Sheikha. I’ve gotten to know both co-founders, Mudassir and Magnus Olsson, and what they have built is truly extraordinary. They are first-class entrepreneurs who share our platform vision and, like us, have launched a wide range of products—from digital payments to food delivery—to serve consumers.
I expect many of you will ask how we arrived at this structure, meaning allowing Careem to maintain an independent brand and operate separately. After careful consideration, we decided that this framework has the advantage of letting us build new products and try new ideas across not one, but two, strong brands, with strong operators within each. Over time, by integrating parts of our networks, we can operate more efficiently, achieve even lower wait times, expand new products like high-capacity vehicles and payments, and quicken the already remarkable pace of innovation in the region.
This acquisition is subject to regulatory approval in various countries, which we don’t expect before Q1 2020. Until then, nothing changes. And since both companies will continue to largely operate separately after the acquisition, very little will change in either teams’ day-to-day operations post-close. Today’s news is a testament to the incredible business our team has worked so hard to build.
It’s a great day for the Middle East, for the region’s thriving tech sector, for Careem, and for Uber.
Uber on,
Dara
