Over 36,000 Sudanese have evacuated since takeover of El Fasher to paramilitary group, states UN agency

Over 36,000 civilians have escaped Sudan's Kordofan area eastern sector of Darfur starting Saturday, as reported by the UN's migration agency.

The strategic central area separating the country's Darfur areas and the Khartoum-Riverine area has during recent weeks become the recent fighting area in the two-year civil war between the Sudanese armed forces and the paramilitary forces.

Substantial Evacuation Figures

An calculated 36,825 people escaped five localities in North Kordofan province between 26 October and 31 October, per data from the International Organization for Migration.

The civilians, primarily walking, headed to Tawila, a town west of El Fasher that is currently sheltering over 652,000 evacuated individuals.

Heightened Troop Concentration

Local inhabitants of North Kordofan on Monday described a substantial rise in both RSF and army presence across urban and rural areas throughout the state.

Both armed factions are competing for control of El Obeid, the North Kordofan state capital and a key logistics and command base that joins Darfur to Khartoum.

"Today, all our forces have gathered at the Bara front here," stated an RSF member in a recently distributed video message.

Area Residents Describe Security Concerns

A local inhabitant of Um Smeima, located west of El Obeid, reported that the quantity of RSF vehicles had grown considerably since the group's takeover of El Fasher.

"We discontinued traveling to our farms, fearing fighting," the individual commented.

Another civilian, who sought confidentiality for security reasons, also confirmed that "there has been a big increase in army vehicles and weapons west and south of El Obeid" over the last fourteen days.

World Warnings and Calls

A senior UN official expressed concerns last week about "widespread abuses" and "ethnically motivated reprisals" by RSF in Bara.

The diplomat alerted to patterns comparable to patterns in Darfur, where RSF militants 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 establishment of humanitarian corridors in Sudan, saying that attacks on civilians and hindrances to humanitarian aid "are causing unacceptable suffering."

Sudan's official envoy to Egypt on Sunday charged RSF of committing war crimes in El Fasher and announced that the Sudanese government would not discuss with the militia organization.

The ambassador further called on the world nations to categorize the group as a terrorist group.

Debbie Martin
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