El Fasher , August 7(Darfur 24)
Residents in El Fasher complained of increasing difficulties obstructing their ability to leave the city, including high travel costs, the lack of safe routes, and fears of abuse by the Rapid Support Forces RSF.
Darfur 24 spoke to several citizens stranded in El Fasher, who expressed their desire to leave the city for treatment or to obtain food and medicine. They indicated that leaving is contingent on the availability of large sums of money and safe routes.
Aza Mohammed Aboud told Darfur 24 that her sister and children are still stranded in El Fasher and cannot leave because they lack the money. She explained that she is trying to help her sister, but she does not have the necessary funds for transportation.
For his part, Ismail Youssef, a young man from the city, stated that he tried to leave El Fasher with his mother to receive medical treatment, but the high cost of transportation, which amounted to more than 300,000 Sudanese pounds per person, prevented him from doing so.
He expressed his concern about the risk of arrest by the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) on charges of belonging to the army or the joint force.
Abdulrahman Ishaq, a community leader in El Fasher, revealed to Darfur 24 that residents’ fears of being subjected to violations when leaving the city, especially towards the northwest, have grown. The RSF has dug deep trenches to prevent the infiltration of residents and eamaked special gates for exits, which, he said, exposes them to arrest or even death.
Ishaq indicated that travel costs have doubled, with the fare for a donkey cart from El Fasher to Hillat al-Sheikh rising from 40,000 to 100,000 Sudanese pounds, from Hillat al-Sheikh to Garni to 100,000 Sudanese pounds, and from Garni to Korma to an additional 100,000 Sudanese pounds per person.
The village of Qarni, located on the road linking the northern countryside to El Fasher, is a major departure point for civilians fleeing Elfashir and supply the city with commodities.
Tahir Hajar, a member of the Presidential Council of the Tasis Alliance, denied reports of a “siege” of the city, confirming in a post on his EX plat form that El Fasher is not under siege, and that there are entities securing the exit of civilians with the support of Ta’sis forces.
Al-Hadi Idris, head of the Sudan Liberation Movement-Transitional Council, also called on El Fasher residents to leave the city, noting the presence of Tasis forces in the Qarni area is to secure them and provide safe passage.
The RSF have imposed siege on El Fasher since April of last year, attempting to seize control of the city as the last remaining SAF stronghold in Darfur region.
According to the International Organization for Migration, the war and siege have displaced more than 782,000 people from El Fasher and Zamzam camp. The World Food Programme estimates that 300,000 civilians remain trapped in the city, with cash assistance provided to 256,000 of them in June.