<<Print>>

A resident of Nyala, in Sudan’s western Darfur region, has described a disturbing picture of life there as the two sides in the country’s conflict continue to fight it out.

The region has seen some of the fiercest fighting in the nearly six-month war, forcing hundreds of thousands to flee their homes.

The witness, who spoke to the BBC’s Sudan Lifeline programme on condition of anonymity, said clashes between the army and the Rapid Support Forces were centred around the headquarters of the armed forces in the city.

“Both sides used light, medium, as well as heavy weapons such as missiles, among many others,” the resident said.

“As for the conditions in the city, they can be described generally as catastrophic, as there is a complete power outage, and all communication services provided by all the different companies are cut.

“The people are demanding the intervention of organisations or even third parties that can urge the two parties to stop fighting so that they can get their daily needs by going to the markets or shops located within the neighbourhoods.

“Today, the people are afraid to go even to these shops for fear of indiscriminate shooting, which has become like rain pouring down here and there on the city’s roads.

“The city has become almost empty of residents, except for a few of them who do not have enough money that could help them move to other places or buy the travel tickets to and from Nyala.”