In excess of 60,000 Flee Sudan's City Following Takeover by RSF Militia, UN Says

Refugees escaping violence in Sudan
Numerous seek to reach the town of Tawila but experience harassment, demands for money and abuse from armed men during their journey

According to the United Nations refugee organization, more than 60,000 civilians have left the city in Sudan of el-Fasher, which was seized by the militia Rapid Support Forces during the weekend.

Accounts suggest mass executions and crimes against humanity as paramilitary forces entered the city following an 18-month encirclement featuring famine and intense shelling.

The flow of those running from the violence towards the community of Tawila, roughly 80km (50 miles) to the west of el-Fasher, had increased in the last several days, according to UNHCR representative.

Refugees were describing shocking stories of abuses, featuring rape, and the agency was having trouble to locate sufficient housing and nourishment for them.

Each child was affected by undernourishment, she added.

Calculations indicate that in excess of 150,000 individuals are presently stranded in el-Fasher, which had been the army's last bastion in the western region of Darfur.

The Rapid Support Forces has denied widespread claims that the executions in el-Fasher are based on ethnic factors and mirror a trend of the Arab paramilitaries focusing on non-Arab populations.

However the paramilitary group has detained one of its fighters, Abu Lulu, who has been accused of on-the-spot executions.

The group shared video revealing the militiaman's arrest subsequent to confirmation that he was responsible for the death of numerous unarmed men close to el-Fasher.

Video sharing service has verified that it has removed the account associated with Lulu. Uncertainty exists whether he had controlled the profile in his identity.

Sudan was entered a internal conflict in April 2023 following a intense struggle for power began between its military and the Rapid Support Forces.

It has caused a famine and claims of genocide in the Darfur area.

Over 150,000 people have lost their lives in the conflict throughout the country, and roughly 12 million have abandoned their homes in what the UN has described as the world's largest humanitarian emergency.

The seizure of el-Fasher reinforces the geographic split in the country, with the RSF now in command of Sudan's west and significant areas of neighbouring Kordofan to the south, and the army occupying the main city, Khartoum, central and eastern areas along the coastal region.

The opposing sides had been partners - coming to power together in a takeover in 2021 - but disagreed over an globally supported initiative to advance to democratic governance.

Michael Marshall
Michael Marshall

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