Over 60,000 Escape Sudan's City Following Seizure by Rapid Support Forces Militia, UN Reports
As stated by the United Nations refugee organization, in excess of 60,000 civilians have escaped the city in Sudan of el-Fasher, which was taken over by the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces during the weekend.
Reports indicate multiple executions and atrocities as paramilitary forces entered the city following an extended blockade characterized by starvation and intense shelling.
The movement of those escaping the violence towards the town of Tawila, approximately 80km (50 miles) west of el-Fasher, had grown in the recent days, as stated by UNHCR spokesperson.
Refugees were telling shocking accounts of abuses, including sexual violence, and the agency was struggling to secure sufficient accommodation and food for them.
Every child was suffering from malnutrition, she noted.
Estimates suggest that more than 150,000 individuals are currently unable to leave in el-Fasher, which had been the army's final bastion in the western part of Darfur.
The Rapid Support Forces has denied broad claims that the executions in el-Fasher are ethnically motivated and resemble a pattern of the Arab paramilitaries attacking non-Arab populations.
Yet the paramilitary group has custodied one of its militiamen, Abu Lulu, who has been implicated in summary executions.
The force distributed recordings depicting the fighter's detention following verification that he was responsible for the death of numerous unarmed men close to el-Fasher.
Social media platform has acknowledged that it has banned the account associated with Lulu. It is not clear whether he had controlled the account in his name.
Sudan was thrown into a internal conflict in April 2023 following a intense power struggle erupted between its military and the Rapid Support Forces.
It has resulted in a famine and claims of genocide in the Darfur area.
Over 150,000 persons have been killed in the fighting across the country, and roughly 12 million have abandoned their dwellings in what the UN has termed the world's largest humanitarian disaster.
The capture of el-Fasher strengthens the regional separation in the country, with the RSF now in command of western Sudan and much of bordering Kordofan to the southern area, and the military controlling the capital, Khartoum, central and eastern areas along the coastal region.
The competing factions had been allies - gaining control together in a takeover in 2021 - but fell out over an globally supported proposal to move towards democratic governance.