The governor of the western Sudanese region of Darfur, Minni Minnawi, has urged civilians to take up arms to defend themselves and the regional capital, El-Fasher, from the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), which has been besieging the city for weeks.
More than 60 people have died and hundreds wounded since the latest clashes began on 10 May, according to medical charity Doctors Without Borders.
“We declare a general alert to defend the innocent lives and property of citizens in El Fasher,” Mr Minnawi posted on X platform on Thursday.
He was responding to a similar call by RSF, which he said had “launched a new campaign to mobilise [fighters] from all regions” to invade the city.
The RSF, however, rejected the allegations and instead accused the governor of “fomenting discord across Darfur”.
The paramilitary forces and the Sudanese army, backed by Darfur armed groups, have continued to trade blame over the escalating sporadic violent ground clashes in El Fasher.
The UN’s humanitarian coordinator for Sudan, Clementine Nkweta-Salami, has warned that the continued violence threatens the lives of over 800,000 civilians.
Sudan’s brutal civil war began in April last year and international efforts to broker a ceasefire between the rival forces have repeatedly failed.