🔗 Share this article

Per the UN refugee agency, in excess of 60,000 individuals have escaped the Sudanese city of el-Fasher, which was seized by the militia Rapid Support Forces recently.

Accounts suggest mass executions and atrocities as militia members stormed the city following an extended encirclement characterized by food shortages and sustained attacks.

The flow of those fleeing the fighting towards the town of Tawila, about 80km (50 miles) west of el-Fasher, had increased in the last several days, according to UNHCR representative.

Refugees were describing terrible stories of atrocities, such as sexual violence, and the humanitarian group was struggling to secure enough housing and nourishment for them.

Each child was affected by undernourishment, she noted.

Estimates suggest that more than 150,000 people are currently trapped in el-Fasher, which had been the military's final fortress in the western part of Darfur.

The Rapid Support Forces has denied broad accusations that the executions in el-Fasher are ethnically motivated and resemble a practice of the Arab militia groups targeting non-Arab communities.

However the RSF has arrested one of its fighters, Abu Lulu, who has been implicated in summary executions.

The force shared video revealing the militiaman's detention after identification that he was behind the killing of several non-combatants close to el-Fasher.

Digital platform has verified that it has removed the account associated with Lulu. Uncertainty exists whether he had operated the profile in his name.

Sudan was thrown into a civil war in April 2023 after a intense contest for control erupted between its military and the RSF.

This has caused a famine and accusations of mass killing in the western Sudan.

In excess of 150,000 people have died in the fighting throughout the country, and roughly 12 million have left their residences in what the UN has called the biggest global humanitarian disaster.

The takeover of el-Fasher strengthens the geographic split in the country, with the Rapid Support Forces now in command of western Sudan and much of neighbouring Kordofan to the south, and the military occupying the main city, Khartoum, the center and east along the coastal region.

The opposing sides had been allies - coming to power together in a coup in 2021 - but split over an globally supported proposal to advance to civilian leadership.