More than 60,000 Escape Sudan's City In the wake of Capture by Rapid Support Forces Paramilitary Group, UN Reports
Per the UNHCR, in excess of 60,000 people have escaped the Sudanese city of el-Fasher, which was captured by the militia Rapid Support Forces over the weekend.
Accounts suggest multiple executions and human rights violations as paramilitary forces took control of the city after an extended siege characterized by famine and intense shelling.
The movement of those running from the fighting towards the town of Tawila, roughly 80km (50 miles) west of el-Fasher, had grown in the past few days, per United Nations refugee agency representative.
Survivors were telling terrible tales of violence, such as sexual violence, and the humanitarian group was having trouble to find sufficient housing and food for them.
Each child was suffering from undernourishment, she noted.
Estimates suggest that in excess of 150,000 individuals are still trapped in el-Fasher, which had been the army's remaining stronghold in the western part of Darfur.
The Rapid Support Forces has denied broad allegations that the killings in el-Fasher are ethnically motivated and follow a practice of the Arab militia groups attacking ethnic minorities.
Yet the paramilitary group has custodied one of its members, Abu Lulu, who has been implicated in on-the-spot executions.
The organization released video revealing the member's apprehension subsequent to confirmation that he was responsible for the killing of several civilians close to el-Fasher.
Social media platform has verified that it has suspended the channel associated with Lulu. Uncertainty exists whether he had controlled the account in his name.
Sudan was plunged into a civil war in April 2023 after a brutal struggle for power erupted between its army and the Rapid Support Forces.
This has resulted in a food crisis and allegations of ethnic cleansing in the Darfur area.
Over 150,000 individuals have been killed in the conflict across the country, and about 12 million have fled their homes in what the United Nations has described as the world's largest humanitarian disaster.
The seizure of el-Fasher solidifies the territorial division in the country, with the Rapid Support Forces now in command of western Sudan and significant areas of adjacent Kordofan to the south, and the army controlling the capital, Khartoum, the center and east along the coastal region.
The competing factions had been partners - coming to power together in a coup in 2021 - but fell out over an foreign-endorsed proposal to transition to democratic governance.
