More than 60,000 Escape Sudanese City In the wake of Capture by RSF Militia, United Nations States
According to the UN refugee agency, in excess of 60,000 civilians have left the Sudanese city of el-Fasher, which was seized by the paramilitary RSF during the weekend.
Reports indicate summary killings and atrocities as militia members stormed the city after an extended siege featuring food shortages and intense shelling.
The flow of those running from the fighting towards the town of Tawila, roughly 80km (50 miles) to the west of el-Fasher, had accelerated in the last several days, per UNHCR spokesperson.
Survivors were narrating terrible accounts of violence, including sexual violence, and the organization was struggling to locate enough housing and supplies for them.
Each child was experiencing malnutrition, she noted.
Calculations indicate that more than 150,000 people are presently stranded in el-Fasher, which had been the army's remaining fortress in the western region of Darfur.
The Rapid Support Forces has denied extensive allegations that the killings in el-Fasher are based on ethnic factors and follow a trend of the Arab fighters focusing on non-Arab communities.
Yet the RSF has arrested one of its members, Abu Lulu, who has been charged with summary executions.
The force released video showing the member's arrest following identification that he was involved in the execution of multiple civilians close to el-Fasher.
Video sharing service has verified that it has banned the channel linked to Lulu. It is not clear whether he had managed the profile in his identity.
Sudan was entered a internal conflict in April 2023 after a vicious struggle for power broke out between its military and the Rapid Support Forces.
The conflict has led to a famine and allegations of ethnic cleansing in the Darfur area.
More than 150,000 people have been killed in the war throughout the country, and about 12 million have left their residences in what the UN has termed the biggest global humanitarian emergency.
The takeover of el-Fasher reinforces the geographic split in the country, with the RSF now in dominance of western Sudan and significant areas of bordering Kordofan to the southern area, and the military holding the main city, Khartoum, central and eastern regions along the Red Sea.
The competing factions had been partners - taking over together in a coup in 2021 - but fell out over an foreign-endorsed plan to transition to democratic governance.