Over 36,000 Sudanese people have fled since takeover of El Fasher to paramilitary group, says UN agency
More than 36,000 civilians have fled Sudan's Kordofan territory eastern part of Darfur starting Saturday, as stated by the UN's migration agency.
The key central region connecting the country's Darfur regions and the Khartoum-Riverine area has over recent weeks become the latest battleground in the extended civil war between the Sudanese armed forces and the paramilitary forces.
Massive Exodus Statistics
An approximated 36,825 people evacuated from five districts in North Kordofan region between 26 October and 31 October, per data from the International Organization for Migration.
The people, mainly traveling by foot, moved toward Tawila, a town to the west of El Fasher that is currently housing over 652,000 displaced people.
Increased Forces Deployment
Local inhabitants of North Kordofan on Monday noted a substantial rise in both RSF and army concentration across communities throughout the state.
Both forces are contesting control of El Obeid, the North Kordofan regional capital and a important strategic 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.
Local Citizens Detail Security Concerns
A area citizen of Um Smeima, located west of El Obeid, stated that the amount of RSF vehicles had grown significantly since the group's takeover of El Fasher.
"We stopped going to our farms, fearing fighting," the resident explained.
Another civilian, who requested anonymity for safety concerns, also reported that "there has been a significant rise in army vehicles and weapons west and south of El Obeid" over the previous fortnight.
Global Warnings and Requests
A senior UN official sounded warnings last week about "large-scale atrocities" and "ethnic-based retaliations" by RSF in Bara.
The official alerted to patterns comparable to patterns in Darfur, where RSF fighters have been alleged to commit mass killings, sexual violence and abductions against non-Arab ethnic groups.
The church leader on Sunday appealed for an quick cessation of hostilities and the creation of relief routes in Sudan, saying that attacks on civilians and obstacles to humanitarian aid "are causing unacceptable suffering."
Sudan's diplomatic representative to Egypt on Sunday accused RSF of perpetrating war crimes in El Fasher and stated that the Sudanese government would not negotiate with the armed faction.
The representative further urged the international community to designate the group as a terrorist group.