Sudan’s army-backed government accused its paramilitary foes of a fatal attack on oil facilities crucial to the export of neighboring South Sudan’s crude, the latest escalation in a two-year civil war.
The Rapid Support Forces’ assault around the Heglig fields on Saturday “led to the death and injury of a number of civilian workers,” the foreign ministry said in a statement. It didn’t give details on the casualties or any damage.
“For security reasons, the Sudanese government may have to suspend operations in the field and evacuate staff to protect their lives,” it added. Heglig, administered by Sudan, is in a border region that’s previously been disputed by South Sudan.
The RSF has been battling Sudan’s military for control of the North African nation since April 2023 and has declared a parallel government. It didn’t immediately respond to an emailed request for comment.
While Sudan has oil reserves, it’s a net importer and its importance to world energy markets stems from its role as a conduit for crude from landlocked South Sudan. Sudan loaded an estimated 3.8 million barrels of its neighbor’s crude in July, according to tanker-tracking data compiled by Bloomberg.
Heglig, which Sudan and South Sudan briefly fought over in 2012, is a key part of the pipeline network that transports the oil to Red Sea terminals for shipping internationally.
“The latest attack goes further by threatening the interests of the Republic of South Sudan and international companies that depend on Heglig for the export of South Sudan’s oil,” the foreign ministry said.
The RSF’s leader, Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, was this weekend sworn in as head of the rival government, which is based in the southern Darfur city of Nyala and seeks to administer swathes of territory it controls. The parallel administration has raised concerns that Africa’s third-largest country is on the verge of a Libya-style de facto split.
The civil war has killed at least 150,000 people, according to US estimates. Millions more have been forced to flee their homes in what the United Nations calls the world’s biggest humanitarian crisis.
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