KHARTOUM, 28 Oct. - (ANA) - Sudan's El-Fasher is witnessing a humanitarian crisis like no other, amid the Rapid Support Forces (RSF)’s siege and capture of the city, rights groups are warning.

 

NGOs and activists are calling for the city’s residents to be spared after the RSF seized control of the El-Fasher's army headquarters - in an escalation of the conflict. 

 

Doctors Without Borders (MSF) urged for civilians to be allowed to flee to safer areas, saying it is concerned that ethnic cleansing campaigns could occur again in the Darfur city.

 

The NGO told The New Arab: "Given the ethnic-based violence spiking across Darfur for over two years and the large-scale massacres committed in Zamzam when the camp was taken last April by the RSF and their allies, we are deeply alarmed that this could happen again in El-Fasher."

 

The Sudanese Doctors Network posted a statement earlier on Monday saying that the RSF paramilitaries are carrying out "ethnic-based" killings in El-Fasher, "executing dozens" of unarmed civilians.

 

El-Fasher is home to multiple ethnic groups, including Sudanese Arabs, the Fur people, as well as the Beja, Zaghawa, Nubian and Daju peoples. Massacres have already been committed against the non-Arab Masalit group.

 

The wider Darfur region has been subjected to genocidal campaigns in the past. The Janjaweed militias, out of which the RSF grew, was accused of being largely responsible for the genocide in Darfur between 2003 and 2008. An estimated 300,000 people were killed.

 

In a statement to The New Arab, the Refugees International NGO also voiced concern over the ethnically-targeted killings of civilians in El-Fasher, and urged the international community to "act" on the atrocities carried out, and called out the UAE's alleged backing of the paramilitaries.

 

Dan Sullivan, the NGO's Africa, Asia and the Middle East director said: "Pressure from the United States and other actors with influence must be brought to bear to allow humanitarian corridors and an end to ongoing atrocities so that the local Sudanese volunteers at the frontline of this crisis can do their work to save lives. Above all, the UAE - the RSF's chief benefactor - must be urged to end its support and to utilise its leverage with the RSF and allied groups to stop further mass killing."

 

 

 

 

MSF has raised alarm over the unfolding crisis, where an increasing number of people are requiring medical treatment.

 

During the night of 26 to 27 October, around 1,000 people from El- Fasher arrived by truck at the entrance of Tawila, where MSF's medical teams are working to provide emergency care and refer patients in the most critical condition directly to the hospital.

 

"So far on Monday, about 300 people were treated at the health post and 130 sent to the emergency room of the hospital, including 15 requiring lifesaving surgery," the NGO told The New Arab.

 

MSF also pointed to the rising malnutrition and starvation levels in El-Fasher. Seventy-five percent of recently screened children were acutely malnourished, with 26 percent severely so.

 

The war has plunged several provinces into famine. Around 24.6 million people are food insecure, while NGOs estimate that between 1062 and 522,000 have died from hunger, including children.

 

In another warning, an Islamic Relief spokesperson told The New Arab that its clinics in central Darfur have received families who are on the verge of starvation after fleeing El-Fasher and its surrounding camps, but "many more people have been unable to escape".

 

"Now we are extremely worried about the risk of more atrocities against civilians remaining there. Humanitarian aid must be allowed in to reach people, and civilians must be guaranteed safe passage out of the city if they wish to leave," the UK charity stressed.

 

The city, located in North Darfur, has been the site of multiple battles between the RSF and the Sudanese army, following the outbreak of the war in April 2023 - the culmination of a power struggle between the two entities.

 

The first battle took place in April of the same year the war began. Clashes broke out again in May and August, with temporary ceasefires agreed in between.

 

By April last year, the RSF launched their offensive on El-Fasher, surrounding it and blocking roads leading into the city, leaving 300,000 civilians trapped in the crossfire.

 

The RSF, led by Mohammed Hamdan Daglo, began capturing more and more facilities in the North Darfur city and intensified its shelling. The death toll in El-Fasher began to rise rapidly, while fewer hospitals were functioning – eventually leading to a crisis being declared. Dozens of casualties have been reported on a near-daily basis since.

 

Communication was also cut, plunging the city into a media blackout.

 

Soon after, a crisis was declared, and NGOs and UN agencies began voicing their concern over the worsening humanitarian situation.

 

On Sunday, the RSF said it captured the army's 6th Division Headquarters.

 

 

 

 

The western-located city was the last remaining foothold of the Sudanese army in Darfur. The RSF’s complete seizure of El-Fasher means that it has control over all major urban centres of Darfur – effectively controlling the majority of the vast region.

 

The RSF’s control over Darfur could potentially partition Sudan, dividing it between the paramilitaries and the Sudanese army.

 

 

El-Fasher is also home to the parallel government the RSF created in April 2025, labelled as a "quasi-state" and established in opposition to the Sudanese army.

 

There are still some parts of El-Fasher under the control of the army and allied armed groups, but it remains doubtful that this will hold out for much longer.

 

Analysts say that the capture of El-Fasher could prompt the RSF to capture more ground in the East African country.

 

The RSF had already made gains over the weekend in the strategic city of Bara, North Kordofan, putting it within hours of Khartoum.   - (ANA) -

 

 

AB/ANA/28 October 2025 - - -