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Sudan: Battles Rage On As UN Warns Of ‘Catastrophe’

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Fierce fighting between rival generals raged on in Sudan Tuesday despite the latest truce, as warnings multiplied of the potential for a “catastrophic” humanitarian crisis with hundreds of thousands of refugees.

Bloodshed has gripped Sudan since April 15 when tensions erupted into armed exchanges between regular army chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and his deputy-turned-rival, Mohamed Daglo, who commands the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces.

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Hundreds have been killed and thousands wounded as air strikes and artillery exchanges have gripped swathes of greater Khartoum sparking the exodus of thousands of Sudanese to neighbouring countries.

Many more cannot afford the arduous journey to Sudan’s borders, and have been forced to hole up inside the city of five million people with dwindling supplies of food, water and electricity.

We are hearing some sporadic gunfire, the roaring of a warplane and the anti-aircraft fire at it,” said one resident of south Khartoum.

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READ ALSO: Sudan Crisis: 1,519 Nigerian Students Leave Khartoum For Port Sudan – FG

In a Monday briefing, the top United Nations aid official in Sudan, Abdou Dieng, warned that the situation was turning into “a full-blown catastrophe”.

Kenyan President William Ruto said the conflict had reached “catastrophic levels” with the warring generals declining “to heed the calls by the Inter-Governmental Authority on Development (IGAD), the African Union and the international community to cease fire.”

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In a virtual meeting with senior UN officials, Ruto said it was imperative to find ways to provide humanitarian relief “with or without a ceasefire”.

Burhan and Daglo, who fell out after carrying out a 2021 military coup which derailed Sudan’s transition to elective civilian rule, have flouted multiple ceasefires, the latest a 72-hour extension agreed late on Sunday.

Foreign governments have scrambled to evacuate their citizens. Over the past 10 days, thousands of foreigners have been brought to safety by air or sea in operations that are now winding down.

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READ ALSO: Sudan Crisis: FG Accused Of ‘Fake’ Evacuation Of Nigerian Students

Russia’s armed forces said on Tuesday they were evacuating more than 200 people from Sudan on four military transport planes.

Nearly 500 people arrived in the Saudi port of Jeddah on Monday aboard two vessels, one a US Navy ship, the other Saudi.

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– Relief trickles in –

Top UN humanitarian official Martin Griffiths arrived in Nairobi on Monday on a mission to find ways to bring relief to the millions of civilians trapped inside Sudan.

“The situation unfolding there (in Sudan) since April 15 is catastrophic,” he said on Twitter.

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UN warns Sudan at ‘breaking point’ as fresh clashes break out
Sudan’s turmoil has seen hospitals shelled, humanitarian facilities looted and foreign aid groups forced to suspend most of their operations.

READ ALSO: Deadly Fighting Between Army, Paramilitaries In Sudan Capital

At least 528 have been killed and some 4,600 wounded in the violence, according to the health ministry.

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The United Nations’ refugee agency, UNHCR, said it was bracing for “the possibility that over 800,000 people may flee the fighting in Sudan for neighbouring countries”.

The World Health Organization warned that the fighting was pushing Sudan’s already ailing health sector toward “disaster” with only 16 percent of health facilities in Khartoum still functioning.

The WHO said that it had delivered six containers of medical equipment to Port Sudan on the Red Sea coast, including supplies for treating trauma injuries and severe acute malnutrition. It had also distributed scarce fuel to hospitals which rely on generators for power.

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Darfur chaos –

Beyond Khartoum, lawlessness has engulfed the West Darfur state capital, El Geneina, where at least 96 people have been reported killed since the start of the fighting, according to UN figures.

READ ALSO: Khartoum, Sudan Sees Lull In Fighting On First Day Of Eid

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More than 330,000 people have been displaced, over 70 percent of them in West and South Darfur states, according to the International Organization for Migration.

“The health system has completely collapsed in Geneina,” the doctors’ union said, adding that looting of clinics and camps for the displaced had forced several agencies to carry out “emergency evacuations” for their teams.

On Friday, Doctors Without Borders said the fighting had forced it to halt “almost all activities in West Darfur”.

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The Darfur region is still scarred by a war that erupted in 2003 when then hardline president Omar al-Bashir unleashed the Janjaweed militia, mainly recruited from Arab pastoralist tribes, against ethnic-minority rebels.

The scorched-earth campaign left at least 300,000 people dead and close to 2.5 million displaced, according to UN figures.

The Janjaweed — which rights groups have accused of atrocities in Darfur — later evolved into the RSF, which was formally created in 2013.

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AFP

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Again, Russia Claims Another Village In Ukraine’s Region

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The Russian army Monday claimed to have captured another village in Ukraine’s Dnipropetrovsk region, moving deeper into Ukrainian territory as peace efforts stall.

Russian forces are slowly but steadily gaining ground in costly battles for largely devastated areas in eastern and central Ukraine, normally with few inhabitants or intact buildings left.

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Russia’s defence ministry said its forces had seized the settlement of Zaporizke in the region, which Russian troops recently advanced into for the first time in the three-and-a-half-year offensive.

READ ALSO:Russia, Ukraine Exchange Prisoners Of War, Civilians

Kyiv denies that Russian troops have gained a foothold in the Dnipropetrovsk region, an important industrial hub.

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After another push by US President Donald Trump to broker a Ukraine-Russia summit, hopes for peace dimmed when Russia last week ruled out any immediate meeting between presidents Vladimir Putin and Volodymyr Zelensky.

The central region of Dnipropetrovsk has previously been largely spared from fighting that has ravaged swathes of eastern and southern Ukraine, until Russia said its forces broke through in July.

READ ALSO:Russian Politicians Mock European Leaders After White House, Ukraine Talks

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Dnipropetrovsk is not one of the five Ukrainian regions — Donetsk, Kherson, Lugansk, Zaporizhzhia and Crimea — that Moscow has publicly claimed as Russian territory.

Ukraine said Russia had launched over 100 drones Monday, killing a 37-year old civilian driver and wounding two people in the northeastern Sumy region.

Moscow said Kyiv had launched about two dozen drones targeting western Russia

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US Comedian Reggie Carroll Shot Dead In Mississippi

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A United States comedian, Reginald “Reggie” Carroll, has been shot dead in Southaven, Mississippi.

The 52-year-old Carroll, widely known as the Knockout King of Comedy, was reportedly killed on Wednesday, August 20, 2025, after sustaining multiple gunshot wounds.

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The Southaven Police Department confirmed the incident in a Facebook statement on Saturday.

“Southaven officers located one male victim suffering from gunshot wounds.

READ ALSO:US Defends New Social Media Vetting For Nigerian Visa Applicants

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The officers and medical personnel provided life saving techniques but the individual succumbed to his injuries,” the statement partly read.

The victim was later identified as Carroll, a Baltimore native.

Police said one suspect was arrested and charged with his murder.

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One male is in custody and has been charged with the murder of Reginald Carroll.

READ ALSO:Russia, Ukraine Exchange Prisoners Of War, Civilians

“Our thoughts are with the family of Mr. Carroll.

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“Thank you to the community for their patience and understanding,” the department added.

The police further assured that there was no ongoing threat to residents, describing the case as “an isolated shooting.”

Carroll, who built his career in stand-up comedy, gained national recognition touring with Katt Williams and headlining his own showcase, Knockout Kings of Comedy.

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READ ALSO:Leader Of UK Christian Group Convicted Of Sexually Abusing Women

He also featured in the 2000 edition of Showtime at the Apollo, appeared on the UPN sitcom The Parkers alongside Mo’Nique and Countess Vaughn, and starred in the 2022 television film Rent & Go.

In 2023, he produced the stand-up special Knockout Kings of Comedy.

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The Southaven Police Department disclosed that an investigation into his death is ongoing.

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US Defends New Social Media Vetting For Nigerian Visa Applicants

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The U.S. Mission in Nigeria on Monday reaffirmed that the safety and security of the United States remain the cornerstone of its visa application and decision-making process.

The US said this following its directive last week that mandates Nigerians to disclose all social media usernames and handles used over the past five years as part of the visa application process.

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US Mission said Nigerian visa applicants must provide a comprehensive list of their social media profiles on the DS-160 visa application form, and warned that omitting the information could lead to visa denials.

READ ALSO:US Ambassador To Paris Slams Macron Over Rising Antisemitism

Reacting to the development, the Federal Government said US citizens intending to visit Nigeria will be subjected to the same measures.

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“The best we can do is to carry out reciprocal action. Some people from the US might want to apply for a visa, and we will adopt the same measures,” spokesman of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Kimiebi Ebienfa, said last Monday.

However, in a statement released Monday on X, the US Mission said prospective visa applicants undergo careful vetting to maintain a safe and welcoming environment in the US.

READ ALSO:US Suspends Work Visas For Nigerian, Foreign Truck Drivers

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It said, “The safety and security of the United States is at the heart of every #USVisa application and decision process.

“That’s why prospective applicants undergo careful screening to ensure a safe and welcoming environment for all.”

The Mission added, “These measures help protect American citizens and communities while supporting secure and responsible travel.”

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