UN sounds alarm over escalating violence and civilian deaths in Sudan’s El Fasher

The United Nations is raising urgent concerns over escalating violence and mounting civilian casualties in El Fasher, the capital of North Darfur, as fighting intensifies between Sudanese armed forces and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF).

UN officials accuse the RSF of committing serious crimes in the besieged city, including murder, rape, and attacks on civilian infrastructure. The humanitarian situation is rapidly deteriorating, with limited access to aid and basic services.

“Since the start of October alone, more than 50 people have reportedly been killed,” said UN spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric, citing medical and local sources. “We condemn this escalation of violence and the killing of innocent civilians.”

According to the Sudan Doctors Network, at least a dozen civilians including women and children were killed in an RSF attack on a hospital in El Fasher, with 17 others injured. This came just one day after a reported strike on the hospital’s maternity ward.

The UN is also alarmed by a separate deadly attack on a mosque where families were sheltering; more than a dozen people were reportedly killed.

The UN warns that the people of El Fasher remain trapped, terrified, and increasingly cut off from life-saving assistance.