KHARTOUM - At least 45 civilians were killed and 28 others injured in an artillery shelling by the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) on residential neighborhoods and displacement camps in western Sudan, the Sudanese army said Friday.

"Neighborhoods and camps in El Fasher city witnessed a significant massacre yesterday, as a result of deliberate shelling by the rebel militia, killing 45 citizens, including children and women, and injuring 28 others who were transferred to health centers," the command of the 6th Infantry Division of the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) said in a statement.

According to the statement, the shelling targeted residential neighborhoods in the southern sector of El Fasher, the Zamzam displacement camp south of the city, and the Abu Shouk camp to the north.

The RSF has not yet issued any comment on the attacks.

Since May 10, fierce clashes have raged in El Fasher, the capital city of North Darfur State in western Sudan, between the SAF and the RSF.

Sudan has been gripped by a devastating conflict between the SAF and the RSF since mid-April 2023.

The deadly conflict has resulted in more than 27,000 deaths and displaced over 14 million people, either inside or outside Sudan, according to estimates by international organizations.