The Abu Shouk displacement camp in Sudan, sheltering approximately 450,000 people, has once again come under violent assault as the war continues to ravage the country. On Monday, fighters from the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) stormed sections of the camp, attacking residents inside their homes, according to reports from the Emergency Response Rooms group. The Resistance Committees in el-Fasher, a coalition of local activists, condemned the attack as a “horrific violation against innocent, defenseless people.” Satellite imagery from Yale University’s Humanitarian Research Lab (HRL) confirmed the presence of around 40 RSF vehicles in the camp’s northwest sector, aligning with eyewitness accounts.
Further analysis by Yale HRL revealed disturbing evidence of war crimes, including photos and videos allegedly showing RSF fighters shooting at civilians attempting to flee while shouting ethnic slurs. Additional satellite images indicated that RSF forces had blocked key escape routes from el-Fasher by seizing control of roads leading to Kutum and Mellit, effectively trapping civilians in active conflict zones. The humanitarian crisis in Abu Shouk is compounded by severe famine, with aid organizations reporting catastrophic levels of malnutrition. Edem Wosornum of the U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) stated that over 60 people, mostly women and children, died of starvation in el-Fasher within a single week.
U.N. spokesman Stephane Dujarric described Sudan’s overall situation as “extremely dire,” noting that more than 12 million people have been displaced and at least 40,000 killed since the war erupted in April 2023. Military clashes continue to escalate, with the Sudanese army claiming it repelled a major RSF offensive in el-Fasher on Monday, destroying 16 vehicles and capturing 34 others. In contrast, the RSF asserted via Telegram that it had gained ground and seized military equipment, though it offered no specifics. Darfur Governor Mini Arko Minawi declared that el-Fasher had “prevailed over those who betrayed their land,” in a pointed reference to the RSF.
Violence has also intensified in North Kordofan, where the Sudan Doctors Network reported that RSF forces displaced over 3,000 families from 66 villages since early August, looting homes and livestock. Many of the displaced have fled to Khartoum and White Nile provinces. The U.N. confirmed that recent attacks in the region killed 18 civilians and injured many more. As the conflict deepens, international organizations are sounding the alarm over an unprecedented humanitarian disaster, with millions facing starvation, displacement, and relentless violence amid a war with no foreseeable end.