More than 36,000 Sudanese people have escaped following takeover of El Fasher to Rapid Support Forces, says UN agency
More than 36,000 people have evacuated from Sudan's Kordofan region eastern sector of Darfur beginning Saturday, as reported by the UN's migration organization.
The strategic central area between the country's Darfur areas and the Khartoum-Riverine area has in recent weeks become the recent fighting area in the extended civil war between the Sudanese military forces and the paramilitary group.
Substantial Exodus Statistics
An calculated 36,825 people evacuated from five localities in North Kordofan state between 26 October and 31 October, according to the International Organization for Migration.
The individuals, mainly traveling by foot, moved toward Tawila, a town western side of El Fasher that is currently sheltering over 652,000 evacuated individuals.
Heightened Forces Deployment
Local inhabitants of North Kordofan on Monday reported a substantial rise in both RSF and army concentration across urban and rural areas throughout the state.
Both military groups are competing for control of El Obeid, the North Kordofan state capital and a key logistics and command base that links Darfur to Khartoum.
"Today, all our forces have gathered at the Bara front here," commented an RSF member in a recently shared video message.
Local Residents Detail Protection Issues
A resident of Um Smeima, located west of El Obeid, reported that the quantity of RSF vehicles had risen substantially since the group's capture of El Fasher.
"We ceased visiting our farms, fearing fighting," the local stated.
Another resident, who sought confidentiality for protection purposes, also reported that "there has been a substantial growth in army vehicles and weapons west and south of El Obeid" over the previous fortnight.
International Warnings and Calls
A senior UN official sounded warnings last week about "large-scale atrocities" and "ethnically motivated reprisals" by RSF in Bara.
The official alerted to patterns comparable to patterns in Darfur, where RSF militants have been alleged to commit mass killings, sexual violence and abductions against specific ethnic communities.
The spiritual head on Sunday appealed for an immediate ceasefire and the creation of humanitarian corridors in Sudan, saying that attacks on civilians and hindrances to humanitarian aid "are producing unacceptable suffering."
Sudan's diplomatic representative to Egypt on Sunday alleged RSF of committing war crimes in El Fasher and announced that the Sudanese government would not engage with the militia organization.
The ambassador further encouraged the international community to categorize the group as a terrorist entity.
