Sudanese Doctor: We Hide Our Identities To Avoid Kidnap by Soldiers

Sudanese medical staff are hiding their identities to avoid abduction or assassination, one doctor has told Newsweek, as the country's warring factions continue their vicious struggle for control regardless of ceasefire agreements.

Dr. Mohamed Fath Alrahman, the general manager of the Al-Nada hospital in Khartoum—operated by the Sudanese American Physicians Association (SAPA)—told Newsweek from the Sudanese capital that those still living and working there fear that daily gunfire and airstrikes will intensify as the Sudanese army and Rapid Support Forces (RSF) look to gain an edge over their rivals.

"We still can hear a lot of fire, a lot of shooting," Alrahman said. "We still can hear the air strikes. We still can hear the artillery shots every now and then…Fighting is on and off right now. But for the past 24 hours, it's been getting more aggressive."

Those in close contact with the military, he said, believe the Sudanese army faction—commanded by Abdel Fattah al-Burhan—and the RSF—commanded by Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, also known as Hemedti—are both preparing major new operations despite agreeing to frequently violated ceasefires.

Alrahman said it is rumored that Burhan's forces are "planning for a big invasion" of the north of the city, where RSF bases are located, and the paramilitary group is strongest. In turn, the RSF is said to be mulling a fresh attack on "the area of the main airport, the main military airport, for the Sudanese army."

In the meantime, Alrahman said he and his colleagues are living in fear of the crossfire and malign activities by militants on both sides.

"We hear about fighters—especially from the RSF—trying to abduct medical practitioners and force them to work in the field hospitals to treat their wounded comrades," he said. "We took a lot of precautions. We deny being doctors, we try to hide our identities, and not to carry any IDs that contain the word 'doctor.'"

Thus far, Alrahman said, his immediate colleagues and the hospital have not been affected. Still, such is the situation in the country that many medical practitioners have already fled, among them dual citizens.

The danger facing them is real. One American-Sudanese doctor—Bushara Ibnauf Sulieman—was killed last month in the capital while treating victims of the fighting between RSF and army units. He was stabbed to death by a group of people suspected to be robbers, according to friends and family. A second American citizen has also been killed elsewhere in crossfire.

The State Department has said that some 1,000 American citizens have already been evacuated from Sudan, with the U.S. government in contact with 4,000 others who have expressed interest in leaving the country.

More than 400 civilians have been killed since fighting broke out in mid-April, according to the Sudan Doctors' Syndicate. Thousands more have been wounded, plus more than 500 fighters on both sides are thought to have also died.

Those who can leave are doing so, Alrahman said.

"Many of my colleagues have double nationality. I have worked with the some American-Sudanese during this war. But all of those I know have fled the country and have travelled either to Saudi Arabia or gone back to the U.S. Some of them got to Egypt at the beginning of the war."

"Right now, I don't know any American-Sudanese doctors staying in Khartoum," said Alrahman, who only has Sudanese citizenship.

"No one can ever guarantee when this war will end," Alrahman said. "And no one can guarantee how aggressive it will get in the next few days."

Newsweek has contacted the Sudanese army and the RSF by email to request comment.