On Tuesday, Mr. Fransen was found by his colleagues with serious but not life-threatening injuries following his disappearance on Sunday
European A top Union humanitarian official in Sudan has been shot dead in Khartoum amid intensifying fighting between rival militaries.
Wim Fransen, a Belgian national who heads the European Civil Protection and Humanitarian Assistance Operation (ECHO) in Sudan, was found on Tuesday by his colleagues with serious but not life-threatening injuries after disappearing on Sunday. It comes at a time when foreign governments and organizations are trying to organize an evacuation.
A European Commission spokesman confirmed the incident, first reported by The New York Times, but declined to elaborate, citing concerns about staff safety. in Sudan.
The shooting comes amid growing reports of looting and mistreatment by militants, including an incident on Monday in which the head of the EU ambassador to Sudan was «attacked» at his home.
“We are concerned about the situation and the safety of our employees,” a European Commission spokesman said at a press conference on Wednesday.
Describing the attack on Aidan O' Hara's spokesman said, «Several armed men in military uniform broke into the house and robbed it. They did not identify themselves.»
The 58-year-old Irish diplomat «continued to work fully» after the attack, according to a spokesman.
The attacks on foreigners have prompted governments and non-governmental organizations to reconsider evacuation plans amid increased fighting for control of Sudan between forces loyal to the two top generals — Commander-in-Chief of the armed forces General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and leader of the powerful paramilitary operational support force General Mohammed Mohammed Hamdan Daglo. commonly known as Hemedti.
Smoke rises over Khartoum during clashes between the Sudanese Armed Forces and paramilitary operational support forces. Photo: Ahmed Satti/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images «We are not currently evacuating staff, we are constantly assessing the situation,» a European Commission spokesman said. «Personnel safety is a priority.»
A German military mission to evacuate about 150 citizens from Sudan was halted on Wednesday due to fighting in the capital Khartoum, news magazine Spiegel reported, citing unnamed sources.
Japan announced it would send planes from Sudan . its defense forces to evacuate about 60 of its citizens from the country.
As the Sudanese capital was rocked by explosions and heavy artillery fire on the fifth day of fighting on Wednesday, ordinary citizens also sought to flee the capital.
After both sides accused each other of violating a 24-hour truce scheduled to begin Tuesday at 6 p.m. local time, one man told The Telegraph he took advantage of the lull in fighting to leave the city.
“Now we do not hear the battle. Everyone is trying to get out,” he said by phone as he drove through Khartoum.
“We were imprisoned in our own homes for about four days. We have no electricity, we have no water, we have been eating salad and dry rice for four days,” he said.
“Everyone is injured. Every hour we get bullets in the house. The bullets are coming from different directions and it's all from RSF. Because I live on the street where they have one of their bases.”
A survivor of the June 2019 massacre of pro-democracy demonstrators by the RSF army and troops dismissed Hemeti's tweets. about fighting for democracy as «bulls—«.
“They beat us, they tried to kill us. I was one of the victims. I just ran. One of my friends was killed,” he said of the 2019 massacre. “I know what these people are doing. They just want to destroy this country.”
Because Sudanese civilians in Khartoum accused the RSF of many reports of abuse, the group claimed without evidence that the Sudanese military and Islamists were dressed in RSF. form to loot to discredit the paramilitary group.
“The tweets are from his lobbying firm, which handles his public relations,” said a fleeing Khartoum resident. “They don't mean anything. He probably doesn't even see them before they leave.”
Another Khartoum resident, also unwilling to be named, said that neither of the rival armed forces was particularly popular with ordinary citizens.
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«They say it has nothing to do with us, it's your fight,» the man told The Telegraph.
The lack of popular support could make it difficult for the army to decisively defeat the SRB, which had already proven to be a formidable force, the man said.
“The army wanted to finish the RSF. They thought they would do it in a very short time,” he said, but were surprised that “RSF were ready and stronger than they thought.”
About 300 people have been killed in the past. The UN health agency said the death toll is likely higher five days later as many bodies were left on the streets, out of reach due to clashes.
UN aid chief Martin Griffiths said he had also received messages about sexual contact. violence and attacks on humanitarian workers.
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