At least 36,000 Sudanese people have fled following capture of El Fasher to RSF, says UN agency

Over 36,000 people have fled Sudan's Kordofan territory eastern part of Darfur starting Saturday, as reported by the UN's migration organization.

The key central region separating the country's Darfur provinces and the Khartoum-Riverine region has in recent weeks become the newest conflict zone in the two-year civil war between the Sudanese military forces and the paramilitary forces.

Massive Evacuation Statistics

An calculated 36,825 people evacuated from five localities in North Kordofan region between 26 October and 31 October, according to the International Organization for Migration.

The people, primarily walking, headed to Tawila, a town west of El Fasher that is currently accommodating in excess of 652,000 refugees.

Escalated Military Presence

Citizens of North Kordofan on Monday noted a significant increase in both RSF and army deployment across communities throughout the state.

Both forces are contesting control of El Obeid, the North Kordofan state capital and a key logistics and command hub that joins Darfur to Khartoum.

"Today, all our forces have assembled at the Bara front here," said an RSF member in a recently circulated video message.

Regional Residents Report Security Concerns

A area citizen of Um Smeima, located west of El Obeid, stated that the quantity of RSF vehicles had grown significantly since the group's capture of El Fasher.

"We discontinued traveling to our farms, afraid of confrontations," the individual commented.

Another civilian, who asked to remain unnamed for protection purposes, also confirmed that "there has been a substantial growth in army vehicles and weapons west and south of El Obeid" over the previous fortnight.

International Alarms and Appeals

A senior UN official expressed concerns last week about "extensive crimes" and "race-driven revenge attacks" by RSF in Bara.

The diplomat alerted to patterns comparable to patterns in Darfur, where RSF fighters have been accused of mass killings, sexual violence and abductions against specific ethnic communities.

The religious leader on Sunday appealed for an immediate ceasefire and the creation of relief routes in Sudan, saying that attacks on civilians and obstacles to humanitarian aid "are creating unacceptable suffering."

Sudan's diplomatic representative to Egypt on Sunday charged RSF of carrying out war crimes in El Fasher and announced that the Sudanese government would not engage with the paramilitary group.

The ambassador further encouraged the international community to designate the group as a terrorist organisation.