Shaden Gardoon, one of the Sudan’s most prominent singers has been killed in the ongoing war in the Sudanese city of Omdurman.
Mrs Gardood, 37, who was caught in the crossfire, died a day after the warring two rival forces agreed to protect civilians, and also to allow passage of humanitarian aid.
The singer died amid ongoing clashes between the Sudanese army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) that have lasted four weeks.
Mrs Gardoon lived in the al-Hashmab neighbourhood, where RSF presence has increased in recent days as the fight ranges.
In a video clip circulated on social media, the Sudanese singer was seen trying to hide from the heavy fire and asked her son to close the window blinds of their building.
She could be heard in the video saying, “Go away from the doors and the windows… in the name of Allah, we are going to die ready wearing our full clothes…you should wear this, we will die in a better shape.”
Ms Gardood regularly made live videos on social media, particularly Facebook, talking and writing intensively against the ongoing war.
The deceased had earlier written in one of her posts, “We have been trapped in our houses for 25 days. We are hungry and living in an enormous fear, but are full of ethics and values,” referring to looting across Khartoum, the capital of Sudan.
A resident living in the same neighbourhood as Gardood confirmed that she died of her wounds.
“Last night, the clashes were violent and intense, which lasted for long hours with fighter jets hovering over all night last night.
“But what I observed is that the clashes were a bit less immediately after Shaden was injured, then we continued to hear the sound from afar,” he said.
While confirming her death on Facebook, Gardoon’s niece, Heraa Hassan Mohammed, said “She was like a mother and a beloved to me, we were just chatting, may God give her mercy.”
She is survived by her 15-year-old son, Hamoudy, and her mother and sister.
Ms Gardood was originally from South Kordofan state, a war zone area since 2011, before she resided in Khartoum with her family.
A number of public figures were killed in Khartoum in the past few weeks, among them is Sudan’s first professional actress, Asia Abdelmajid, who died in the crossfire at the age of 80.
The conflict erupted in mid-April when the RSF refused to be integrated into Sudan’s army under a planned transition to civilian rule.
Four days after the start of the war, constant ceasefires were announced at the request of regional powers, but none were upheld.
The clashes have not stopped as the fighter jets continue hovering over the entire city.
Over 750 people have been killed and more than 4,000 injured in the violent power struggle between the rival generals of the two forces.
Also, 80% of the hospitals in the country have been closed down with severe food, water and electricity shortages.
According to United Nations figures, over 700,000 people have been displaced internally while another 150,000 have fled the North African nation.
