Siege-stricken urban area in Sudan experiences horror, with at least seven fatalities and 71 wounded, due to shelling by RSF paramilitaries
Conflict in El-Fasher: A City on the Brink
El-Fasher, the last major city in western Darfur still under army control, has become the epicentre of violence in the region. The city has been the target of a relentless siege by the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), a paramilitary group that evolved from the Janjaweed Arab militias accused of genocide in Darfur in the early 2000s.
The RSF, led by Mohamed Hamdan Daglo, has been making a push to wrest full control of the region from the Sudanese army. If successful in capturing El-Fasher, the RSF would control all five Darfur state capitals.
The war between the Sudanese army and the RSF has made El-Fasher the most violent front line. Satellite images show that the RSF has constructed more than 31 kilometers of berms in El-Fasher, creating a literal kill box. This has been accompanied by artillery barrages and ground incursions into densely populated neighborhoods, the city's airport, and the Abu Shouk displacement camp.
The intensity of the conflict has taken a heavy toll on the city's population. At least seven people were killed and 71 others wounded in El-Fasher due to shelling by the RSF. The true toll from Saturday's attack is likely higher, as many injured were unable to reach the hospital due to the intensity of the RSF's strikes.
The few hospitals still operational in El-Fasher have been repeatedly bombarded, making it increasingly difficult for the wounded to receive medical attention. UN experts estimate that nearly 40 percent of children under five are acutely malnourished in El-Fasher, with 11 percent severely so. Many people in El-Fasher are resorting to eating animal fodder and dying from exposure, starvation, or violence while attempting to escape into the desert.
Both warring sides have been accused of war crimes, with the RSF being specifically accused of genocide, sexual violence, and systematic looting. In 2023, UN experts found up to 15,000 people, mostly from the Massalit tribe, were killed in massacres blamed on RSF forces in El-Geneina, the West Darfur's state capital.
The RSF has also announced the formation of a parallel government in the Darfur region. The local police headquarters in El-Fasher has already been captured by the RSF.
Raymond, a local resident, stated that the pattern of life is ending in El-Fasher due to poverty, crossfire, bombardment, and deaths while trying to leave. "It's a living hell," he said.
As the conflict continues, experts have warned that the city's non-Arab Zaghawa tribe may face a similar fate to the non-Arab Massalit tribe in El-Geneina. The international community must take urgent action to prevent further atrocities and bring peace to this war-torn region.
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