El fasher: Hundreds of thousands of civilians are trapped amid an escalation of fighting in El Fasher, the capital of Sudan's North Darfur state, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said on Sunday. 'With fighters pushing further into the city and escape routes cut off, hundreds of thousands of civilians are trapped and terrified - shelled, starving, and without access to food, healthcare, or safety,' said UN emergency relief coordinator Tom Fletcher.
According to Ghana News Agency, Fletcher expressed deep alarm over reports of civilian casualties and forced displacement, calling for an immediate ceasefire in El Fasher, across Darfur, and throughout Sudan. He emphasized the importance of allowing civilians safe passage and access to aid, urging that those fleeing to safer areas must be allowed to do so safely and with dignity. Fletcher also stressed that local responders must be protected, and attacks on civilians, hospitals, and humanitarian operations must cease immediately.
UN estimates indicate that around 300,000 people are living in desperate conditions in El Fasher, which has been isolated for more than a year. The paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) have reportedly taken control of El Fasher, the last government-controlled city in the Darfur region, as per their own statements.
The military has not initially commented on the situation. Media reports suggest that fighting continues in the capital of North Darfur state, although this information could not initially be independently verified. Sudan's de facto ruler, Abdel-Fattah al-Burhan, has been engaged in a bloody power struggle with RSF leader Mohamed Hamdan Daglo since April 2023, with both sides accused of serious human rights violations.
The UN considers the situation to be the world's biggest humanitarian crisis, with over 12 million people displaced and more than 26 million facing starvation. This accounts for about half of the country's population suffering from acute hunger. The regions of Darfur and Kordofan, currently under RSF control, are particularly affected.