FRI 4 SEPT -- People caught trying to smuggle food into the besieged city of El Fasher are being “executed on sight” by the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), according to one civilian.
Speaking to Avaaz from a village at the edge of the city, Bakheeta* said bringing food in had become so dangerous that few were still willing to try, adding that the city was being “strangled”.
It comes as the RSF makes a renewed push to take El Fasher, the last capital city in Darfur not under its control, following a siege that has lasted more than 500 days.
Last week, satellite images showed the group had built more than 31km of earthen walls around the city and was able to control the flow of people from all directions.
“They built the berm after discovering food was being smuggled in on donkeys and horses,” Bakheeta said.
“Now, only foot traffic is possible, and people are being killed for trying to bring food into El Fasher.”
Around 260,000 civilians are still trapped inside El Fasher, according to the World Health Organization. Famine conditions were identified in parts as long ago as December, and recent months have seen many forced to eat animal feed in order to survive.
Bakheeta said that, as well as the berms, entry to parts of the city was being hampered by trenches.
“Smuggling has turned into a dangerous operation requiring three people: one outside the trench, one inside it, and another within the city to pull goods through,” she said.
“The barriers are too wide to jump, so you must climb down and up again, risking arrest, torture, or death. Because of this, movement in and out of the city has nearly stopped.
“A handful of smugglers still try, but only at night, and mostly women. Men are executed on sight if caught carrying food.
“Inside El Fasher, we are trapped. These berms have strangled the city.”
Last week, footage purportedly shot in El Fasher, though not verified by Avaaz, showed three young men being interrogated at gun point and admitting that they had been trying to bring pasta, rice, and flour into the city.
The man filming tells the three that they are to be executed.
The RSF assault has seen it take territory in the northwest quadrant of El Fasher, where the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) still has a presence, and civilian areas subjected to heavy bombardment.
A local aid worker, Tarig*, said that, as bad as the shelling had been over recent months, it had now reached “terrifying levels”.
“This past week has been unbearable,” he said. “Five, sometimes ten shells fall at the same time, hitting every neighbourhood, every street, one after another without pause.
“People are being killed in huge numbers, and the injuries are horrific. Shell wounds mean amputations or instant death.”
At least 25 civilians have been killed and over 170 injured in RSF shelling of El Fasher in the last week, according to the Sudan Doctors Network.
Tarig said the wards of one local hospital building were “overflowing with the wounded” but that there were no doctors there to treat them.
“Most of the medical staff have either been killed or forced to flee the city,” he said.
The UN International Organization for Migration estimated that around 1,050 households were displaced last Friday because of the security situation in El Fasher.
The same day, the UN Secretary-General António Guterres said he was “appalled by the relentless attacks by the Rapid Support Forces”.
“The Secretary-General calls for an immediate ceasefire in and around the El Fasher area,” a spokesperson said.
“He insists that immediate steps must be taken to protect civilians and enable the safe, unhindered and sustained delivery of humanitarian assistance into the area, and to allow any civilians seeking to leave the area voluntarily to do so safely.”
Voices from the Ground
Interviews available on request. Names have been changed due to safety concerns.
Speaking to Avaaz from a village at the edge of El Fasher on Wednesday, Bakheeta said:
“Life in El Fasher is collapsing under siege. The only road out the northern route toward Tawila [a displacement camp around 50km west] is now cut off by a trench dug deep into the earth. This trench, more than two meters wide, has become both a prison wall and a death trap.
“Families used to walk on foot through Nevasha, passing Hilla al-Sheikh and Qarni, and then west toward Shaqra and Tawila. That road is gone. The RSF controls it completely.
“They built the berms after discovering food was being smuggled in on donkeys and horses. Now, only foot traffic is possible, and people are being killed for trying to bring food into El Fasher.
“Smuggling has turned into a dangerous operation requiring three people: one outside the trench, one inside it, and another within the city to pull goods through.
“The barriers are too wide to jump, so you must climb down and up again, risking arrest, torture, or death. Because of this, movement in and out of the city has nearly stopped. A handful of smugglers still try, but only at night, and mostly women.
“Men are executed on sight if caught carrying food. Last month, women and children were killed on the Tawila road, and since then almost no one dares to leave.
“Inside El Fasher, we are trapped. These berms have strangled the city, making survival a matter of luck. To step outside means risking your life; to stay inside means waiting for hunger and disease to take you. No one knows when, or if, escape will be possible again.”
Speaking to Avaaz from inside El Fasher on Wednesday, aid worker Tarig said:
“Honestly, the situation is far worse than anyone can imagine. Whatever picture you have in your mind, the reality here in El Fasher is much worse.
“This past week has been unbearable. The shelling is relentless. Five, sometimes ten shells fall at the same time, hitting every neighbourhood, every street, one after another without pause.
“People are being killed in huge numbers, and the injuries are horrific. Shell wounds mean amputations or instant death. The only ones who survive are those hiding underground at the exact moment of the shelling. It is very clear the bombardment is coming from very close range.
“In the past months, the shelling was bad, but now it has reached terrifying levels. The Southern Hospital [formerly one of the major health facilities in the city] is completely overwhelmed. There isn’t a single empty bed. Every ward is overflowing with the wounded, but there are no doctors. Most of the medical staff have either been killed or forced to flee the city. We have no medicine, no IV fluids, not even bandages or gauze.
“The economic situation is really bad. We have no cash, no food, no clean water. Hunger is everywhere. At best, even the families who have received money through a mobile bank [Bankak] eat only one small meal a day.
“Leaving El Fasher now is more dangerous than staying. The Rapid Support Forces surround the city, arresting anyone they find on the streets. Families are forced to pay huge ransoms to release them, and if they cannot, their loved ones are killed immediately.
“If we have one final message before we die, it is this: the international community must save us. They must intervene for the civilians of El Fasher. If they saw what is happening to the women and children here, they would cry from sorrow. And even what I’ve told you now doesn’t capture a quarter of what is actually happening on the ground.”
The weekly dispatch features the latest developments, first-hand testimony, footage, photos, stats and analysis on Sudan. We can connect you with voices from the ground, experts and survivors of the war. I am available at +44 7935 296 004 / sudan@avaaz.org
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The Rapid Support Forces (RSF) is building an earthen wall around El Fasher to create a “kill box” and prevent civilians fleeing the besieged city, satellite imagery suggests.
People caught trying to smuggle food into the besieged city of El Fasher are being “executed on sight” by the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), according to one civilian.
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