SUDANESE SINGER DIES IN CROSSFIRE AMID HEAVY VIOLENCE
▶ Shaden Hussein had said that if she died, it would be ‘with values intact’
Sudanese singer Shaden Hussein has been killed in crossfire in Khartoum’s twin city of Omdurman, family and friends said on social media.
Her death drew attention to the dangers civilians face amid fighting between the Sudanese military and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces.
Hussein was from the town of Al Obeid in western Kordofan province.
She became famous in 2016, when she launched a career rooted in the ballad-singing traditions of the region.
Fighting in Sudan broke out on April 15 after weeks of tension between the forces of army chief Gen Abdel Fattah Al Burhan and RSF leader Gen Mohamed Dagalo.
The rivals held leading roles in the country’s Transitional Sovereignty Council, but ties have been severed as they vie for control of the country.
In an audio recording streamed online shortly before her death, Hussein could be heard telling her 15-year-old son Hamoudy to stay away from the windows of their home.
She also made reference to being appropriately dressed in case she died.
“We are going to die ready, wearing full clothes,” she said.
Hussein, 37, is one of hundreds of civilians to have been killed since fighting broke out.
Thousands have been injured and at least 200,000 have been forced to seek refuge in neighbouring countries.
About 700,000 people have been displaced inside Sudan, the UN said. Hussein died the day after representatives of the army and RSF reached an agreement to protect civilians after talks in Jeddah sponsored by Saudi Arabia and the US.
The rival Sudanese factions were to start negotiations on a ceasefire this week.
Both sides continued fighting through previous ceasefires mediated by foreign powers.
Shelling and air strikes pounded parts of Sudan’s capital yesterday.
Shells fell on Bahri and air strikes hit Omdurman, Reuters reported. Al Arabiya television reported heavy clashes in central Khartoum. Hussein’s home in Omdurman is near the complex that houses the state TV and radio stations.
It was captured by the RSF during the early days of the fighting. The area has been the target of strikes by the army, which has used its advantage of air power against RSF positions in and around Khartoum.
“We have been trapped in our house for 25 days. People are looting before our own eyes and we are watching with regret filling our hearts,” Hussein wrote in a recent post on social media.
“Yes, we are hungry and living in unimaginable fear. But we feel full with our ethics and values. If we die, we will die with our dignity and values intact.”
That was an apparent reference to the widespread looting during the violence.
Some users on social media suggested a stray shell hit Hussein’s home, although no official cause of death has been announced.
The RSF has repeatedly claimed that air strikes and artillery launched by the army have killed civilians.
The army has denied these claims, alleging that RSF fighters have looted homes and used civilians as human shields during the fighting.
In its latest statement on Saturday night, the army said RSF fighters were forcing residents out of their homes in Khartoum and were occupying 22 hospitals and healthcare centres in the capital.
Thousands have been injured and at least 200,000 have been forced to seek refuge in neighbouring countries