🔗 Share this article More than 60,000 Escape Sudan's City In the wake of Takeover by RSF Militia, United Nations Says Many seek to reach the settlement of Tawila but experience intimidation, extortion and abuse from fighters along the way As stated by the UN refugee agency, over 60,000 individuals have escaped the city in Sudan of el-Fasher, which was seized by the paramilitary RSF during the weekend. There have been summary killings and human rights violations as RSF fighters stormed the city after an year-and-a-half siege marked by starvation and heavy bombardment. The exodus of those escaping the violence towards the community of Tawila, about 80km (50 miles) to the west of el-Fasher, had accelerated in the last several days, per United Nations refugee agency representative. They were narrating terrible tales of violence, featuring rape, and the agency was finding it difficult to find enough accommodation and food for them. Every child was experiencing malnutrition, she noted. It is estimated that over 150,000 residents are still unable to leave in el-Fasher, which had been the military's final stronghold in the western part of Darfur. The RSF has denied broad accusations that the executions in el-Fasher are driven by ethnicity and follow a trend of the Arab paramilitaries targeting ethnic minorities. However the RSF has detained one of its members, Abu Lulu, who has been charged with extrajudicial killings. The organization shared recordings showing the militiaman's detention subsequent to verification that he was responsible for the death of multiple unarmed men near el-Fasher. Social media platform has verified that it has suspended the profile connected to Lulu. The status remains unclear whether he had managed the profile in his identity. Sudan was thrown into a internal conflict in April 2023 after a brutal power struggle broke out between its military and the RSF. The conflict has resulted in a starvation emergency and claims of mass killing in the western Sudan. In excess of 150,000 persons have lost their lives in the fighting around the country, and approximately 12 million have fled their dwellings in what the United Nations has called the biggest global humanitarian crisis. The capture of el-Fasher solidifies the regional separation in the country, with the RSF now in dominance of western Sudan and much of neighbouring Kordofan to the south, and the army holding the capital, Khartoum, central and eastern regions along the Red Sea. The opposing sides had been partners - coming to power together in a coup in 2021 - but fell out over an foreign-endorsed plan to transition to democratic governance.