The international community warns of an offensive on the Sudanese town of El Fasher. The UN, the United States and humanitarian organizations fear carnage if the capital of North Darfur is taken by General Hemedti’s paramilitaries. The Rapid Support Forces (RSF) have been fighting against the Sudanese armed forces for a year now and have launched several attacks since last Friday to try to take control of the city. El Fasher is the only capital of Darfur to still be in the hands of the regular army.
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Paramilitaries have amassed thousands of fighters in recent months, including allied Arab militias, several researchers say.
According to the Center for Information Resilience, 32 villages were burned by these fighters in April, within a 50 km radius around El Fasher. Today, they surround the city and are ready to attack.
Since Friday, the paramilitaries of the rapid support forces have launched two offensives to try to enter El Fasher. Clashes took place on the outskirts to the north and east of the city.
Opposite: the Sudanese armed forces, whose ranks have been reinforced in recent weeks by two important armed groups from Darfur, namely the SLM of Minni Minawi (former governor of Darfur) and the Jem of Gibril Ibrahim, who have both renounced to their neutrality. A rally following the abuses committed by paramilitaries in other provinces.
According to one observer, the paramilitaries are numerically more numerous, but the Darfur rebels are flocking to El Fasher and seem to have the upper hand.
The United Nations is concerned about the consequences of a large-scale offensive. The city has nearly 2 million inhabitants – mainly Zaghawa – including around 800,000 refugees who have already fled fighting in other Darfur provinces, including the attack on Nyala in December 2023.
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