Thu Sep 04 16:51:35 UTC 2025: **Summary:**
Civilians trapped in el-Fasher, Sudan, are facing dire conditions due to a siege imposed by the Rapid Support Forces (RSF). The RSF is accused of targeting civilians, particularly men, attempting to escape the city, preventing them from reaching safety in nearby Tawila. Reports indicate that those who do manage to flee are forced to pay exorbitant fees and surrender their belongings to RSF fighters. The RSF’s actions, including building berms (barriers) around el-Fasher, are exacerbating a humanitarian crisis, with food supplies dwindling, and civilians facing starvation. There are reports the RSF is specifically targeting IDP camps, executing men and displacing hundreds of thousands of people.
**News Article:**
**RSF Accused of Trapping and Targeting Civilians Fleeing El-Fasher, Sudan**
**El-Fasher, Sudan** – Civilians trapped in the besieged city of el-Fasher, North Darfur, are facing a desperate situation, with reports emerging that the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) are deliberately targeting those attempting to flee. The RSF, engaged in an ongoing conflict with the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF), has imposed a crippling siege on the city, leaving an estimated 260,000 people languishing in dire conditions.
Witnesses report that the RSF is actively preventing civilians from escaping to safer areas, particularly the town of Tawila. “If the RSF didn’t target civilians, then all the civilians would have left el-Fasher by now,” said Ahmed Abubakr Imam, a local resident defending his community.
Escape routes are reportedly perilous, with RSF fighters demanding exorbitant fees and valuables from those attempting to leave. Men are particularly at risk, with reports of detention and execution by the RSF, who accuse them of being SAF fighters. Women and children have also been abducted.
According to the Yale Humanitarian Research Lab, the RSF has constructed miles of desert berms (barriers) around el-Fasher, further restricting movement and effectively creating a “kill box” around the city.
The RSF’s actions are exacerbating an already dire humanitarian crisis. Food supplies are dwindling, and families are struggling to survive on meager rations or even animal feed. There are reports the RSF is specifically targeting IDP camps, executing men and displacing hundreds of thousands of people. The UN has accused the RSF of summarily executing 16 men from Abu Shouk, as part of a wider attack that killed dozens of people.
“We have reached the point of famine,” warned Magdy Yousef, a resident of el-Fasher and a member of the Emergency Response Rooms (ERRs), grassroots initiatives providing service provisions to beleaguered civilians.
The RSF did not respond to requests for comment on the allegations. The situation in el-Fasher continues to deteriorate, raising concerns about a potential large-scale humanitarian catastrophe.
First Piper 