Thousands flee El Fasher as Doctors Without Borders warns of humanitarian catastrophe
Doctors Without Borders (MSF) has urgently appealed for the protection of civilians in El Fasher, North Darfur, and for safe passage to be allowed to areas of refuge, as ethnic-based violence and large-scale massacres continue to terrorise the region.
MSF said it is deeply alarmed that this could happen again in El Fasher, recalling the devastating attacks in Zamzam camp last April when the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) and their allies took control.
On Monday, MSF medical teams, working 60 kilometres away in Tawila, admitted dozens of patients from El Fasher to the overwhelmed hospital there.
“During the night of October 26 to 27, around 1,000 people from El Fasher arrived by truck at the entrance to Tawila, where we set up a health post to provide emergency care and refer patients in critical condition directly to the hospital,” MSF reported.
So far, approximately 300 people have been treated at the health post and 130 sent to the hospital’s emergency room, including 15 requiring lifesaving surgery.
The organisation warned that many more remain trapped in and around El Fasher.
“For now, many more people appear to remain trapped in and around El Fasher, and we stand ready to respond to further mass influx of displaced and injured people in Tawila,” MSF said.
Last week, over 1,300 people fleeing El Fasher arrived in Tawila on 18-19 October, adding to the existing displaced population. Among these new arrivals, MSF screened 165 children under five and found that 75% were acutely malnourished, including 26% severely.
“This shocking rate is a testament to the horror unfolding in El Fasher, where famine has been spreading as the RSF have been attacking and besieging the area for more than 500 days, preventing food and aid from reaching the starving people at all costs.”
The agency warned that soaring prices, closed community kitchens, shelled markets, and blocked aid have left civilians with almost no access to food.
MSF continues to call on authorities and international actors to ensure that aid reaches those in desperate need and that civilians can safely escape the violence.
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