Trending 
The Rapid Support Forces (RSF) launched a violent assault on Mustariha, a North Darfur stronghold belonging to their former militia chief, Musa Hilal, on Monday.
According to eyewitnesses and local sources, the attack left at least 28 people dead and dozens more injured.
The United Nations reported that the insecurity forced approximately 2,690 residents to flee the town in just 24 hours, adding to the millions already displaced by Sudan’s ongoing civil war.
The raid highlights a deepening rift within the Arab Rizeigat ethnic group, which serves as the primary tribal base for the RSF.
Musa Hilal, a former Janjaweed leader who once led the brutal counter-insurgency in Darfur during the 2000s, had largely remained neutral in the current conflict between the RSF and the regular army.
However, his recent decision to voice support for the Sudanese army appears to have triggered the RSF’s retaliation against his home territory.
Eyewitnesses described a massive force utilising heavy artillery and drones to overwhelm the town.
Medical staff at nearby Kabkabiya Hospital confirmed receiving nearly 40 patients suffering from gunshot wounds and shrapnel injuries, while reports from the Sudan Doctors Network indicated that Mustariha’s primary healthcare centre was destroyed.
The RSF confirmed they captured the town on Monday, following several days of escalating tension and drone strikes targeting Hilal’s residence.
This internal power struggle comes amid broader accusations of atrocities in the region.
A recent UN probe found that the RSF has committed acts of genocide against non-Arab ethnic groups in Darfur as they consolidate control over the western territory.
With tens of thousands killed and over 11 million people displaced since the war began in April 2023, the assault on Mustariha marks a dangerous new chapter of intra-tribal violence in what is already the world’s largest humanitarian crisis.
