In excess of 60,000 Escape Sudan's City Following Capture by Rapid Support Forces Paramilitary Group, UN States
Per the UN refugee agency, over 60,000 people have escaped the city in Sudan of el-Fasher, which was taken over by the militia RSF during the weekend.
Reports indicate mass executions and crimes against humanity as paramilitary forces stormed the city following an extended siege marked by famine and intense shelling.
The exodus of those running from the violence towards the community of Tawila, roughly 80km (50 miles) west of el-Fasher, had grown in the last several days, per UNHCR spokesperson.
Refugees were telling horrendous tales of atrocities, featuring rape, and the humanitarian group was finding it difficult to secure adequate shelter and supplies for them.
Every child was suffering from malnutrition, she added.
Estimates suggest that over 150,000 individuals are presently stranded in el-Fasher, which had been the military's last stronghold in the western region of Darfur.
The RSF has denied broad accusations that the deaths in el-Fasher are based on ethnic factors and follow a pattern of the Arab paramilitaries targeting non-Arab populations.
However the RSF has custodied one of its fighters, Abu Lulu, who has been accused of on-the-spot executions.
The force distributed recordings showing the militiaman's arrest following confirmation that he was involved in the killing of multiple civilians near el-Fasher.
Video sharing service has acknowledged that it has removed the profile connected to Lulu. The status remains unclear whether he had managed the account in his identity.
Sudan was entered a civil war in April 2023 following a vicious struggle for power broke out between its army and the RSF.
This has caused a food crisis and claims of ethnic cleansing in the western Sudan.
In excess of 150,000 individuals have been killed in the conflict across the country, and about 12 million have left their homes in what the United Nations has described as the most extensive humanitarian crisis.
The seizure of el-Fasher solidifies the geographic split in the country, with the RSF now in control of Sudan's west and much of bordering Kordofan to the southern area, and the military holding the capital, Khartoum, central and eastern areas along the Red Sea.
The opposing sides had been collaborators - taking over together in a seizure of power in 2021 - but disagreed over an foreign-endorsed proposal to move towards civilian rule.
