https://arab.news/99aez
- In Al-Fasher, women are dying in childbirth, children collapse from thirst, and supplies have all but vanished
- Two decades after the world pledged 鈥渘ever again鈥� in Darfur, survivors of latest violence say history is repeating itself
LONDON: A haze of red dust hangs over the cracked roads of Al-Fasher. Children stumble through the rubble-strewn outskirts, barefoot and silent, their faces taut with exhaustion. A woman collapses beside a water container, her two toddlers clinging to her scarf.
Nearby, a man holds a torn piece of cardboard with the word 鈥淶amzam鈥� scrawled in charcoal 鈥� a word that no longer means refuge. The camp it refers to, once one of the largest displacement sites in Sudan鈥檚 North Darfur, has been ravaged by violence.
On April 11, armed groups reportedly linked to the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces launched a deadly assault on the city of Al-Fasher, Zamzam, and another displacement camp called Abu Shouk, forcing tens of thousands to flee.
According to preliminary reports from the UN and humanitarian agencies, more than 400 civilians 鈥� including women, children, and up to a dozen aid workers 鈥� may have been killed in the space of three days, in attacks that also struck the nearby town of Um Kadadah.
The RSF said the camps in question were being used as bases by what it called 鈥渕ercenary factions.鈥� It also denied targeting civilians and accused its rivals of orchestrating a media campaign, using actors and staged scenes within the camp to falsely incriminate it.
Preliminary reports from the UN and humanitarian agencies said over 400 civilians 鈥� including women, children, and up to a dozen aid workers 鈥� may have been killed in the space of three days, in attacks that also struck the nearby town of Um Kadadah. (AFP)
The assault sent shockwaves throughout the region. More than 400,000 people fled, many of them to already overwhelmed towns like Tawila. Others disappeared into the hills of Jebel Marra, carrying only what they could hold. Zamzam is now under RSF control.
鈥淚t has been completely overrun 鈥� killing, raping, burning, and taking people hostage. No one remains unless they are prisoners,鈥� Altahir Hashim, a human rights advocate who once lived in Zamzam, told Arab News.
Now based in the UK, Hashim monitors desperate voice messages sent by survivors still in hiding. 鈥淓very morning I hear names of the dead, pleas for food, calls for medicine,鈥� he said. 鈥淏ut no one is listening.鈥�
For many in Darfur, the violence echoes a familiar pattern 鈥� and a painful reminder of promises unkept. This April marked 20 years since the UN Security Council referred atrocities in the region to the International Criminal Court.
But for those displaced today, the anniversary feels hollow. 鈥淭he killers are still free. The victims are still forgotten,鈥� said Hashim, referring to the genocide perpetrated by the RSF鈥檚 forerunner, the Janjaweed. 鈥淲e are reliving what the world said would never happen again.
IN NUMBERS
- 13m Displaced persons in Sudan, including 4m who have fled abroad.
- 150k Estimated death toll since the conflict began on April 15, 2023.
- 30m People in need of humanitarian assistance.
鈥淭he people arriving in Al-Fasher have nothing. No shoes, no food, no blankets. Famine was already creeping through Zamzam before the attack 鈥� now it鈥檚 an open wound.鈥�
Although the Sudanese Armed Forces have recently made headway against their RSF rivals, retaking the capital, Khartoum, in March, the center of the conflict has shifted elsewhere since erupting suddenly on April 15, 2023.
Al-Fasher itself has become the last major stronghold of the Sudanese state in Darfur region. Here, tens of thousands of newly displaced civilians crowd into schools, mosques, and courtyards.
The city, once a lifeline for aid distribution across the wider region, is now itself under siege. Forces reportedly affiliated to the RSF surround it, choking off humanitarian access and isolating the population within.
More than 400,000 people fled following the RSF assault, many of them to already overwhelmed towns like Tawila. Others disappeared into the hills of Jebel Marra, carrying only what they could hold. (AFP)
Dr. Ibrahim Abdullah Khatir, director general of North Darfur鈥檚 Ministry of Health, is among the few officials still coordinating medical efforts in the city. He described conditions as 鈥渂eyond collapse.鈥�
Khatir told Arab News: 鈥淓ven pregnant women needing cesarean sections are being turned away.鈥�
He added: 鈥淲e have received reports of mothers dying in labor because there are no doctors, no medicine, no way out.鈥�
Fuel has all but vanished from the city. Diesel prices have quintupled, halting the trucks that once delivered drinking water to outer neighborhoods. The city鈥檚 main water stations are out of service.
鈥淐hildren are collapsing from dehydration,鈥� Khatir said. 鈥淎nd now, our staff can鈥檛 even get to the clinics.鈥�
Al-Fasher was never untouched by conflict, but it was a place where aid agencies could still operate and displaced people could seek help. Now, with RSF fighters reportedly deploying drones and artillery in surrounding areas, even that fragile space is crumbling.
Survivors describe the flight from Zamzam as a gauntlet of fear. Amina, a mother of four, arrived in Al-Fasher after walking for three days.
鈥淲e hid in dry riverbeds and behind trees,鈥� she said. 鈥淢y youngest is sick now 鈥� he hasn鈥檛 eaten properly in a week. There is no milk, no clean water. We are waiting for help that hasn鈥檛 come.鈥�
Others, like 14-year-old Abdulrahman, came alone. 鈥淚 lost my parents in the crowd. I don鈥檛 know if they made it,鈥� he said, huddled beneath a tarp shared with strangers. 鈥淚 just walked with people who were running.鈥�
People who fled Zamzam camp rest in a makeshift encampment in an open field near the town of Tawila in Sudan鈥檚 western Darfur region on April 13, 2025. (AFP)
The UN children鈥檚 fund, UNICEF, has warned that more than 825,000 children around Al-Fasher are at daily risk of death due to malnutrition and a lack of clean water.
Humanitarian organizations are mobilizing aid 鈥� including 1,800 metric tons of food and 9,000 non-food kits 鈥� but with road access cut off and security deteriorating, deliveries have stalled. Several agencies say their staff remain trapped inside the city with no safe evacuation routes.
Medecins Sans Frontieres suspended operations in Zamzam earlier this year due to insecurity. Other groups have pulled back or reduced staff due to threats and attacks.
One international aid worker in Al-Fasher, speaking on condition of anonymity, told Arab News: 鈥淲e鈥檝e gone from emergency mode to survival mode. There鈥檚 nothing left to distribute. And no guarantee we鈥檙e even safe.鈥�
UNICEF has warned that more than 825,000 children around Al-Fasher are at daily risk of death due to malnutrition and a lack of clean water. (AFP)
The violence has once again drawn attention to Darfur鈥檚 long and bloody history of displacement, exclusion, and impunity.
In the early 2000s, the region was the site of mass killings and systematic ethnic targeting. Today, many Darfuris say the same patterns are playing out again.
鈥淭his isn鈥檛 just war,鈥� Hashim said. 鈥淭his is designed to erase entire communities. To remove them, not just physically, but from the map of Sudan.鈥�
Fatima, a local nurse working in a makeshift clinic near Al-Fasher鈥檚 central mosque, said she sees the emotional toll every day. 鈥淲e don鈥檛 have proper medicine, so we clean wounds with salt water. But it鈥檚 the look in people鈥檚 eyes that haunts me. They are afraid to hope.鈥�
The violence has once again drawn attention to Darfur鈥檚 long and bloody history of displacement, exclusion, and impunity. (AFP)
Despite urgent appeals from the UN and Sudan鈥檚 humanitarian coordinator, Clementine Nkweta-Salami, little progress has been made to secure humanitarian corridors or even a temporary ceasefire to allow aid in.
鈥淭ime is running out,鈥� Dr. Khatir said. 鈥淲e are out of water. Out of food. Out of medicine. And soon, out of time.鈥�
Al-Fasher holds more than just strategic value; it is the historical and cultural heart of Darfur. For many here, it represents the last place left to defend human dignity.
鈥淚f Al-Fasher is lost,鈥� Dr. Khatir said, 鈥渢hen the hope for Darfur is lost too.鈥�