Over 60,000 Escape Sudanese City After Capture by RSF Militia, United Nations Says
As stated by the UN refugee agency, in excess of 60,000 people have fled the city in Sudan of el-Fasher, which was taken over by the militia RSF recently.
Accounts suggest summary killings and crimes against humanity as paramilitary forces entered the city after an 18-month encirclement marked by food shortages and intense shelling.
The movement of those escaping the conflict towards the community of Tawila, roughly 80km (50 miles) west of el-Fasher, had accelerated in the last several days, as stated by UNHCR representative.
Survivors were narrating terrible tales of violence, including sexual violence, and the organization was having trouble to secure adequate accommodation and supplies for them.
Every child was affected by undernourishment, she noted.
Calculations indicate that over 150,000 people are still stranded in el-Fasher, which had been the army's remaining stronghold in the western region of Darfur.
The Rapid Support Forces has denied broad accusations that the killings in el-Fasher are driven by ethnicity and follow a pattern of the Arab militia groups attacking ethnic minorities.
Yet the paramilitary group has detained one of its members, Abu Lulu, who has been implicated in summary executions.
The force released footage showing the fighter's detention after identification that he was involved in the killing of several non-combatants in the vicinity of el-Fasher.
Social media platform has confirmed that it has removed the profile linked to Lulu. The status remains unclear whether he had managed the account in his identity.
Sudan was plunged into a internal conflict in April 2023 following a intense struggle for power began between its army and the Rapid Support Forces.
The conflict has led to a famine and claims of ethnic cleansing in the Darfur area.
More than 150,000 people have died in the conflict around the country, and about 12 million have abandoned their dwellings in what the United Nations has termed the world's largest humanitarian emergency.
The capture of el-Fasher solidifies the regional separation in the country, with the RSF now in control of Sudan's west and significant areas of bordering Kordofan to the south, and the army controlling the capital, Khartoum, the center and east along the Red Sea.
The competing factions had been allies - taking over together in a seizure of power in 2021 - but disagreed over an globally supported proposal to advance to civilian leadership.