More than 36,000 Sudanese have evacuated since takeover of El Fasher to Rapid Support Forces, says UN agency
In excess of 36,000 people have evacuated from Sudan's Kordofan region eastern part of Darfur starting Saturday, according to the UN's immigration body.
The strategic central area separating the country's Darfur provinces and the capital region has over recent weeks become the latest battleground in the 24-month civil conflict between the Sudanese armed forces and the paramilitary group.
Substantial Displacement Numbers
An approximated 36,825 people escaped five districts in North Kordofan region between 26 October and 31 October, according to the International Organization for Migration.
The civilians, most on foot, headed to Tawila, a town to the west of El Fasher that is currently sheltering more than 652,000 displaced people.
Increased Military Presence
Local inhabitants of North Kordofan on Monday noted a substantial rise in both RSF and army deployment across urban and rural areas throughout the state.
Both armed factions are contesting control of El Obeid, the North Kordofan provincial capital and a critical supply and command base that connects Darfur to Khartoum.
"Today, all our forces have converged on the Bara front here," stated an RSF member in a recently distributed video statement.
Local Residents Describe Protection Issues
A resident of Um Smeima, located west of El Obeid, described that the quantity of RSF vehicles had grown considerably since the group's takeover of El Fasher.
"We stopped going to our farms, afraid of confrontations," the resident explained.
Another inhabitant, who asked to remain unnamed for protection purposes, also confirmed that "there has been a big increase in army vehicles and weapons west and south of El Obeid" over the previous fortnight.
World Warnings and Calls
A senior UN official raised the alarm last week about "large-scale atrocities" and "ethnic-based retaliations" by RSF in Bara.
The diplomat alerted to patterns comparable to patterns in Darfur, where RSF fighters have been alleged to commit mass killings, sexual violence and abductions against certain racial groups.
The religious leader on Sunday called for an immediate ceasefire and the creation of humanitarian corridors in Sudan, declaring that attacks on civilians and hindrances to humanitarian aid "are causing unacceptable suffering."
Sudan's ambassador to Egypt on Sunday alleged RSF of carrying out war crimes in El Fasher and announced that the Sudanese government would not engage with the armed faction.
The ambassador further called on the world nations to designate the group as a terrorist organisation.