Sudan’s Conflict Reaches a Key City that Had Been a Haven for Many. Aid Groups Suspend Work or Flee

9:56 AM EST, December 19, 2023

CAIRO (AP) — Sudan’s deadly conflict between a powerful paramilitary force and the army has reached a strategic city that had been a haven for hundreds of thousands of displaced people, and key humanitarian groups say they have been forced to suspend work there or flee.

On Tuesday, Gen. Mohammed Hamdan Dagalo, leader of the Rapid Support Forces, announced that they had taken the city of Wad Medani about 100 kilometers (60 miles) southeast of Khartoum. The claim could not be independently verified.

Since the start of the conflict, the city had been governed by the army, headed by Gen. Abdel Fattah Burhan, and was a key hub for humanitarian organizations largely removed from the front lines of the fighting.

The military didn’t respond to a request for comment.