Khartoum [Sudan], October 28 : Sudan's army chief, General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, has announced the withdrawal of government troops from their last remaining stronghold in Darfur, as the United Nations issued a grave warning over reports of "atrocities" by the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), now in full control of the city of el-Fasher.
According to Al Jazeera, al-Burhan made the announcement late on Monday, a day after the RSF claimed to have captured the main Sudanese army base in el-Fasher. The army's retreat leaves over 250,000 civilians, nearly half of them children, under RSF control. Aid groups described scenes of chaos, with reports of killings, arrests, hospital attacks, and fighting between RSF and withdrawing soldiers.
In his statement, al-Burhan said the army withdrew to prevent further civilian suffering. He said the decision came in response to "the systemic destruction, and the systemic killing of civilians" by the RSF, adding that the army hoped to "spare the citizens and the rest of the city from destruction." He further vowed, "We are determined to avenge what happened to our people in el-Fasher. We, as the Sudanese people, will hold these criminals accountable."
Al Jazeera reported that the fall of el-Fasher could deepen the fragmentation of Sudan, more than a decade after South Sudan's independence. The ongoing war began in April 2023 when tensions between the army and the RSF erupted into open fighting in Khartoum and across the country, killing tens of thousands and displacing nearly 12 million people.
Footage circulating on social media showed RSF fighters celebrating inside the captured army base and elsewhere in el-Fasher. Other videos showed armed men beating and shooting civilians attempting to flee. Al Jazeera noted that many residents were detained amid widespread violence.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres described the developments as a "terrible escalation in the conflict," adding, "The level of suffering that we are witnessing in Sudan is unbearable."
The UN Human Rights Office said it had received reports of "summary executions" carried out by RSF fighters against civilians fleeing the violence, with "indications of ethnic motivations for killings." Volker Turk, the UN high commissioner for human rights, warned that "the risk of further large-scale, ethnically motivated violations and atrocities in el-Fasher is mounting by the day."
Al Jazeera quoted the Sudan Doctors Network describing the RSF's assault as a "heinous massacre," reporting dozens of deaths and widespread looting of hospitals and medical facilities. "What remained of essential life-supporting and health care infrastructure" was destroyed, the group said.
The Darfur Network for Human Rights said more than 1,000 civilians had been detained, calling it "systematic targeting of civilians, arbitrary detentions and potential acts amounting to war crimes." Among those held was a local journalist, one of the few remaining in the city, according to the Sudanese Journalists' Union, which warned of possible "mass violations" similar to those in Geneina in 2023, where hundreds were killed.
The Sudan Doctors Union said the RSF had turned el-Fasher into a "brutal killing field," condemning its actions as a "barbaric policy that aims at terrorizing and annihilating civilians." The group also urged the international community to designate the RSF as a terrorist organisation.
UN humanitarian chief Tom Fletcher expressed "deep alarm" over reports of civilian deaths and forced displacement, saying, "Hundreds of thousands of civilians are trapped and terrified, shelled, starving and without access to food, health care or safety." He called for "safe, rapid and unimpeded humanitarian access" to affected populations.
Before the latest assault, the UN children's agency estimated that about 260,000 civilians, half of them children, were trapped in el-Fasher. The International Organization for Migration reported that over 26,000 people had fled to nearby rural areas and the town of Tawila, which is now overwhelmed with displaced families.
Elsewhere, Al Jazeera reported that RSF fighters also attacked the town of Bara in central Kordofan over the weekend, killing at least 47 people, including nine women, according to the Sudan Doctors Network.
The RSF evolved from the Janjaweed militia, infamous for atrocities committed during the Darfur conflict in the 2000s. The ongoing war has claimed more than 40,000 lives and created what the UN calls the world's worst humanitarian crisis, with regions such as el-Fasher now facing famine.
The conflict has been marred by "ethnically motivated killings and rape," according to the UN and rights groups. The International Criminal Court has confirmed that it is investigating alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity in Sudan.
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