Adam Regal, spokesperson for the General Coordination for Displaced Persons and Refugees in Darfur, said armed RSF units pursued fleeing civilians along the main escape routes out of the city. Many were reportedly intercepted near the area of Qarni, where thousands remain stranded without adequate food, medical care or shelter. Some families were separated in the chaos, leaving large numbers of unaccompanied children, he said.
According to Regal, more than 1,300 people were injured by gunfire during the flight from the city, while over 1,200 children are suffering from severe malnutrition. He added that around 700 elderly people are now in critical condition as humanitarian supplies fail to reach the area.
Regal said more than 15,000 survivors have reached the town of Tawila, west of El-Fasher, but many arrived with untreated injuries or trauma related to the violence they faced along the way.
Tawila, already overwhelmed by earlier waves of displacement, is now hosting over one million internally displaced people, according to the group. Regal appealed to international agencies to rush emergency food supplies, medical aid, clean water, shelter materials, and psychological support, stressing the dire situation facing children who witnessed killings and assaults during their escape.
The RSF seized El-Fasher, the capital of North Darfur, on Oct. 26. Rights groups and humanitarian organizations have since accused the paramilitary force of committing massacres, abuses, and forced displacement, raising fears that the fall of the city could accelerate the fragmentation of Sudan.
The International Organization for Migration (IOM) estimates that over 81,000 people have fled El-Fasher and nearby areas since the RSF offensive.
Sudan has been engulfed in war since April 2023, when fighting erupted between the Sudanese army and the RSF. Attempts by regional and international mediators to negotiate a ceasefire have repeatedly failed, while the conflict continues to kill thousands and uproot millions across the country.