Civilians who sought refuge in El-Fasher, the capital of North Darfur, 195 kilometers northeast of Nyala, Sudan, are enduring severe suffering characterized by extreme starvation, due to the ongoing conflict.
These starving individuals recount harrowing tales of hardship as the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), led by the battle-hardened General Muhammed Hamdan Dagalo, pursue another significant victory in their brutal fight against the Sudanese Armed Forces.
In a recent interview with BBC, the US envoy to Sudan, Tom Perriello, warned that El-Fasher, the only city in the western Darfur region not under RSF fighters, could fall within weeks.
The city was besieged by the paramilitary group a fortnight ago, in a bid to control it. Amid cruel street battles lies a tale of starvation, devastation, and death.
“We see 45,000 pregnant women who not only have no real prenatal care,” Perriello told BBC, adding that these victims do not even have enough meals a day to be nourished adequately for a healthy pregnancy.
El-Fasher, once a sanctuary for those fleeing the horrors of conflict, has tragically morphed into another brutal frontline.
The town, now a scene of despair and chaos, is home to hundreds of thousands of civilians trapped in a harrowing cycle of hunger and thirst. As food and water shortages intensify, the town’s residents endure unspeakable suffering.
El-Fasher’s streets, once bustling with hope and life, now echo with the terrifying sounds of shelling and gunfire. Civilians, including the elderly and children, find no safe haven, as bullets and explosions breach their homes and even the few remaining hospitals.
One of the last functioning health facilities, the Sayyid Shuada health center, struggles to cope with the mounting casualties. Each day, it receives an average of fifty wounded patients, a staggering number that pushes the center to the brink of collapse.
Footage from the Sayyid Shuada health center, captured by the BBC, reveals the raw pain and trauma inflicted upon El-Fasher’s residents. A distraught mother, too shocked to speak, clutches her toddler after shelling devastated their home, injuring five family members.
Her husband’s and children’s blood intermingles on her child’s face, a grim testament to the indiscriminate violence tearing through the once flourishing town. It is now reduced to rubble!
Claire Nicolet, leading the medical charity MSF’s emergency response in Sudan, describes to the situation to BBC as “pretty dramatic,” with the lone surgeon working tirelessly around the clock to address the urgent need for surgeries.
Local volunteers, exemplifying the resilience and solidarity of the community, have formed committees to support the overwhelmed hospital. They tirelessly search for water, fuel, and essential medical supplies, even as their own lives remain in peril.
Khalid Abdul Hamid, a volunteer while talking to BBC recounts the community’s efforts to scrape together donations of cash, goods, and services from their already war-ravaged neighbors.
“From our own efforts and the efforts of well-wishers, we have managed to get some medicine… or cash contributions to buy medicine from the local market,” he explains. Their efforts, though heroic, are a fragile lifeline in an increasingly dire situation.
The situation deteriorates daily, with an increasing number of health facilities succumbing to the relentless fighting. On a recent Saturday, RSF fighters allegedly stormed the South Hospital, a vital referral center for civilians wounded in the conflict.
Gunmen opened fire inside the hospital, looted the facility, and allegedly made off with an ambulance, forcing the hospital’s closure.
This attack on the South Hospital followed a series of violent incidents, with the facility being shelled and shot at least three times in ten days.
Earlier, in May, a paediatric hospital managed by MSF in El-Fasher was shelled, leading to the death of, killing innocent children, and injuring many others. Such brutal assaults have compelled tens of thousands of people to flee once again, seeking refuge in the increasingly limited safe areas of Sudan’s arid west.
As the violence continues unabated, international voices like Mr. Perriello call for an urgent ceasefire. “We need this to end,” he pleads.
El-Fasher stands as a testament to the extreme suffering inflicted by relentless conflict. Its people, caught in the merciless clutches of war, demonstrate immense courage and resilience, but their cries for help echo louder each day.
It remains to be seen if the international community will heed their call and act swiftly to alleviate their suffering and restore peace to this war-ravaged town.
