Over 60,000 Escape Sudan's City After Seizure by Rapid Support Forces Militia, United Nations Says

Displaced people fleeing conflict in the region
Numerous are trying to reach the settlement of Tawila but encounter harassment, extortion and mistreatment from armed men along the way

Per the UN refugee agency, over 60,000 people have left the Sudanese city of el-Fasher, which was captured by the militia Rapid Support Forces recently.

There have been multiple executions and crimes against humanity as paramilitary forces stormed the city after an year-and-a-half siege characterized by famine and sustained attacks.

The exodus of those running from the fighting towards the town of Tawila, about 80km (50 miles) to the west of el-Fasher, had grown in the recent days, according to United Nations refugee agency spokesperson.

Refugees were telling shocking accounts of violence, including rape, and the humanitarian group was having trouble to locate sufficient accommodation and supplies for them.

Every child was affected by malnutrition, she added.

Estimates suggest that over 150,000 residents are presently unable to leave in el-Fasher, which had been the military's last stronghold in the western region of Darfur.

The RSF has rejected broad allegations that the executions in el-Fasher are based on ethnic factors and mirror a pattern of the Arab fighters attacking non-Arab communities.

However the paramilitary group has custodied one of its members, Abu Lulu, who has been accused of extrajudicial killings.

The group distributed recordings depicting the militiaman's apprehension subsequent to verification that he was involved in the killing of multiple non-combatants near el-Fasher.

Video sharing service has verified that it has removed the profile connected to Lulu. The status remains unclear whether he had managed the profile in his identity.

Sudan was thrown into a domestic fighting in April 2023 after a brutal struggle for power erupted between its military and the RSF.

The conflict has led to a famine and accusations of mass killing in the western Sudan.

More than 150,000 individuals have lost their lives in the war across the country, and approximately 12 million have abandoned their homes in what the UN has termed the world's largest humanitarian disaster.

The capture of el-Fasher reinforces the territorial division in the country, with the Rapid Support Forces now in control of Sudan's west and significant areas of neighbouring Kordofan to the southern area, and the military occupying the capital, Khartoum, the center and east along the Red Sea.

The two warring rivals had been partners - coming to power together in a seizure of power in 2021 - but disagreed over an internationally backed initiative to advance to democratic governance.

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