Over 60,000 Run from Sudanese City In the wake of Seizure by RSF Paramilitary Group, United Nations States
Per the United Nations refugee organization, over 60,000 people have left the city in Sudan of el-Fasher, which was taken over by the militia Rapid Support Forces over the weekend.
Accounts suggest multiple executions and crimes against humanity as paramilitary forces took control of the city after an extended encirclement characterized by food shortages and heavy bombardment.
The movement of those escaping the conflict towards the town of Tawila, roughly 80km (50 miles) to the west of el-Fasher, had grown in the last several days, per United Nations refugee agency spokesperson.
Survivors were describing terrible accounts of abuses, including rape, and the organization was finding it difficult to secure sufficient housing and food for them.
All children was affected by undernourishment, she commented.
Calculations indicate that over 150,000 people are currently trapped in el-Fasher, which had been the military's last bastion in the western region of Darfur.
The RSF has rejected extensive accusations that the deaths in el-Fasher are ethnically motivated and resemble a trend of the Arab militia groups focusing on non-Arab communities.
Yet the RSF has arrested one of its fighters, Abu Lulu, who has been charged with on-the-spot executions.
The group released footage depicting the fighter's apprehension subsequent to identification that he was behind the death of multiple civilians close to el-Fasher.
Digital platform has acknowledged that it has banned the account associated with Lulu. The status remains unclear whether he had operated the profile in his identity.
Sudan was plunged into a internal conflict in April 2023 when a vicious power struggle began between its army and the Rapid Support Forces.
The conflict has resulted in a starvation emergency and allegations of genocide in the western Darfur region.
In excess of 150,000 persons have lost their lives in the fighting throughout the country, and roughly 12 million have abandoned their homes in what the UN has termed the biggest global humanitarian disaster.
The seizure of el-Fasher strengthens the regional separation in the country, with the Rapid Support Forces now in command of the western region and significant areas of adjacent Kordofan to the south, and the army occupying the main city, Khartoum, central and eastern areas along the coastal region.
The two warring rivals had been partners - gaining control together in a coup in 2021 - but fell out over an foreign-endorsed proposal to advance to civilian rule.