Concerns for civilians high after RSF claims control of Sudan’s el-Fasher

As Rapid Support Forces (RSF) paramilitary fighters claim to have taken control of the besieged city, the UN has issued an urgent call for the protection and safe passage of hundreds of thousands of civilians in Sudan’s el-Fasher.

In response to reports of civilian casualties and forced displacement in North Darfur, the state’s capital, on Monday, UN humanitarian chief Tom Fletcher raised the alarm.

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In an effort to recapture the Sudanese army’s final stronghold in the vast western region of Darfur, the RSF has laid siege to El-Fasher for almost 18 months. At least 250, 000 civilians have been forced to flee their homes as a result of the fighting.

In a statement, Fletcher said, “Hundreds of thousands of civilians are trapped and terrified – shelled, starving, and without access to healthcare, food, or safety,” describing el-Fasher as “at breaking point.”

He also demanded that all civilians fleeing the fighting be free of any obstacles to humanitarian aid and safe passage. Fletcher wrote on social media that “ceasefire now, in El Fasher, in Darfur, and throughout Sudan.”

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres issued a warning about a “terrible escalation” later on Monday, praising Sudan’s “unbearable” humanitarian situation, which had been raging since April 2023.

Guterres also urged all nations that are “providing weapons to the parties to the war” to stop putting pressure on efforts to reach a ceasefire in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, in a press conference.

RSF strengthening its hold on Darfur

The civil war in Sudan, which has claimed the lives of tens of thousands of people, displaced 12 million, and left 30 million people in need of aid, could turn out to be the biggest humanitarian crisis in history, according to observers.

Al Jazeera’s Hiba Morgan, who was reporting from Khartoum, the capital of Sudan, predicted that the RSF’s grip on Darfur would be strengthened by its takeover.

According to Morgan, “This implies that the RSF has more autonomy in the western region,” adding that the fighters may even seek to “separate” Darfur from the rest of Sudan.

The paramilitary group has been accused of committing atrocities in El-Fasher despite RSF’s assurances of civilian protection.

The Sudan Doctors Network claims that the advancing RSF fighters killed unarmed civilians on “ethnic grounds.”

The RSF has reported that there are more than dozens of victims, but access to the affected areas is still difficult because of the complete security collapse it has caused, according to reports from our field teams.

The statement could not be independently verified.

Meanwhile, Darfur’s governor, Minni Minnawi, who is allied with Sudan’s army, has vowed to keep civilians safe from the advancing RSF.

Minnawi, who was quoted by the AFP news agency as calling for an “independent investigation into the alleged RSF violations and massacres,” was also quoted as saying.