WAD MADANI, Sudan: A strategic Nile bridge in Sudan’s capital has collapsed, the army and rival paramilitaries said in separate statements Saturday, trading blame for its destruction nearly seven months into their devastating war.
Witnesses reported “clear signs of destruction on the Shambat Bridge” which crosses the White Nile and connecting Khartoum’s sister cities of Khartoum North and Omdurman.
Images posted online, which AFP was unable to immediately verify, showed a section of the bridge about halfway across the river had disappeared. Vehicles, apparently damaged, lay on the part of the bridge still standing.
The army, led by Sudan’s de facto ruler Abdel Fattah Al-Burhan, said in a statement that “the rebel militia destroyed the Shambat Bridge early this morning... adding a new crime to their record.”
The paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), led by Burhan’s former deputy Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, denied the accusation.
In a statement, the RSF charged that “the Burhan terrorist militia... destroyed the Shambat Bridge this morning, thinking that they could defeat our brave forces.”
In August, airstrikes and artillery fire launched by army forces loyal to Burhan hit the Shambat Bridge.
Their paramilitary rivals had used the bridge as a supply route, a local resident and a military expert told AFP.
Sudan fighting destroys strategic Khartoum bridge
https://arab.news/4px9k
Sudan fighting destroys strategic Khartoum bridge
- Witnesses reported “clear signs of destruction on the Shambat Bridge” which crosses the White Nile and connecting Khartoum’s sister cities of Khartoum North and Omdurman
- Images posted online showed a section of the bridge about halfway across the river had disappeared
Israel first responders say woman killed after Iran missile attack in Tel Aviv area
- AFPTV images showed a street flanked by residential buildings whose facades were destroyed by blasts, as well as burnt out cars
TEL AVIV: Israel’s emergency service Magen David Adom said on Saturday that a woman was killed in the Tel Aviv area after Iran fired a barrage of missiles toward Israel.
“Paramedics have confirmed the death of a woman in her 40s with severe injuries,” MDA said.
Earlier on Saturday, MDA said that a woman in a critical condition was among 21 people injured in the Iranian strikes.
AFP journalists and Israeli television channels reported first responders and firemen deployed in several parts of Tel Aviv, and physical damage to the city.
AFPTV images showed a street flanked by residential buildings whose facades were destroyed by blasts, as well as burnt out cars.
Firemen extinguished the flames from fires that broke out in the surrounding area while first rescuers evacuated the injured.
Throughout the evening, AFP journalists reported loud blasts in the Tel Aviv area, Jerusalem and the occupied West Bank, as Israel’s aerial defense system shot down barrages of missiles.
The military said Saturday evening that “several points of impact” were reported throughout Israel.
Speaking from one point of impact, Israeli police spokesman Dean Elsdunne said that first responders were going from building to building to check for damages and more injuries.
