More than 60 people have been killed in airstrikes on a Sudanese camp for internally displaced persons (IDPs) in the besieged city of El Fasher.
Sudan is currently in a state of civil war between the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) and the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF). The RSF have been besieging El Fasher for over a year. At its core, the conflict is a fight between two rival warlords.
The airstrikes took place on 10 October following an intensification of the RSF’s bombardment of the city. Of the 60-plus people killed in the attack, 22 were children. On 7 October, 13 people were killed when El Fasher’s Saudi Hospital was hit by shelling, another 13 people were killed when a mosque in the Abu Souk area was hit the following day, and two more people died of their injuries in the days after the shelling.
The United Nations has issued a security resolution calling on the RSF to end its siege of El Fasher. At the beginning of the month, 100 aid organisations called on the RSF to at least open a humanitarian corridor to allow civilians to leave and for aid to come in.
The RSF has taken control of two refugee camps near the city and turned them into military bases. Churches and other religious buildings have also been used for military purposes, despite being civilian refuges.
The SAF have also been accused of carrying out similar attacks, with 16 people killed in a drone strike on the town of Al-Kuma on 11 October. The town is currently controlled by the RSF and lies to the east of El Fasher. Locals claim at least 150 airstrikes have been conducted on the town, causing significant loss of life and damage to essential infrastructure.
Christian Solidarity Worldwide (CSW) was among the humanitarian organisations calling for a safe route in and out of El Fasher.
Scot Bower, the group’s CEO, said, “CSW is deeply concerned by the latest efforts of the RSF to increase pressure on hundreds of thousands of civilians in El Fasher who have already endured almost 18 months of a brutal siege.
"These latest attacks on an IDP camp, hospital and mosque may all constitute war crimes, and can be added to the tragically long list of similar atrocities the RSF has committed during the past two and a half years of conflict with the SAF, who also stand accused of perpetrating war crimes and crimes against humanity.
“We call yet again on the international community to do all it can to end the siege on El Fasher, protect the lives of civilians, and urge all parties to the conflict to initiate an immediate, nationwide ceasefire.”
