Sudan's El Fasher suffers intense fighting, severe humanitarian conditions

El Fasher, Oct 16 (IANS) Escalating clashes between the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) in the western city of El Fasher have further deteriorated the already dire humanitarian and health situation, as the UN issued urgent appeals for an immediate end to the violence in the besieged city.

Local committees in El Fasher have called on international and regional bodies to intervene swiftly to protect civilians, warning that continued fighting could trigger an "imminent famine" and the total collapse of healthcare services, reports Xinhua news agency.

"Time is running out. Hunger is rising... The clashes are constant, the crimes too many to count. Speaking of hunger is no longer enough -- we've moved beyond complaint into a phase of slow extinction," the Coordination of Resistance Committees in El Fasher said in a statement on Wednesday.

"We write, we scream, we plead, but it feels like our words are falling into a void -- no aid planes, no humanitarian corridor, no real international action, and no ground effort to break the siege," the statement added.

The Sudanese government has accused the RSF of worsening the humanitarian crisis in El Fasher by imposing a siege and obstructing aid deliveries.

"The RSF militia has obstructed the humanitarian response in El Fasher," said Acting Humanitarian Aid Commissioner Ahmed Mohamed Osman, accusing the group of seizing more than 14,600 metric tons of assistance en route to the city.

He urged the international community to take immediate action to lift the blockade on civilians, in accordance with UN Security Council resolutions.

Meanwhile, fighting between the SAF and RSF has intensified.

In a statement, the SAF's sixth Infantry Division said it had repelled an attempted incursion by RSF forces into the city on Wednesday. "Our troops were on high alert, neutralised the attacking force, and seized several weapons and pieces of equipment," the division said.

The Mashad Organisation, a human rights observatory, has recorded 146 civilian deaths, including 41 children, in El Fasher in recent days, citing deliberate shelling of residential areas and executions of those fleeing the violence.

The observatory described the RSF's actions as "systematic atrocities that constitute war crimes."

The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) warned of catastrophic consequences if the siege continues, pointing to acute food shortages, disease outbreaks, and the near-collapse of healthcare services.

"El Fasher, North Darfur, continues to be under siege," the OCHA said in a post on X on Wednesday. "Over 260,000 civilians -- half of them children -- are trapped amid relentless attacks, hunger, and cholera."

The agency called for an immediate halt to the violence, stating, "We need hostilities to cease and safe humanitarian access."

Violent clashes have been ongoing in El Fasher since May 2024, between the SAF and allied forces on one side and the RSF on the other, with fighting intensifying in recent days.

The conflict between the SAF and RSF, which erupted in April 2023, has killed tens of thousands and displaced millions, further deepening the country's humanitarian crisis.

--IANS

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