El Fasher, August 11(Darfur 24)
At least 37 civilians were killed and dozens more injured on Monday following renewed clashes between the army, the Rapid Support Forces, and their allies in El Fasher, North Darfur.
Besieged residents of El Fasher woke up at dawn today to the sound of shelling and explosions, before clashes erupted in the east, north, and west of the city.
A number of residents of Abu Shouk camp told Darfur 24 that “approximately 10 civilians were killed as a result of artillery shelling on various parts of the camp’s blocks, coinciding with the Rapid Support Forces’ advance into Block 5 surrounding the market. More than 20 others were injured.”
They indicated that the death toll later rose to 30 civilians in the camp following the clashes.
Other residents of the Abu Shouk neighborhood in Al Hilla told Darfur 24 that the artillery shelling, which has been ongoing since the morning, has killed approximately seven people between Abu Shouk and the First Class neighborhood, in addition to injuring more than 13 who were transferred to the emergency department at the Saudi Hospital.
Darfur 24 newspaper spotted the flight of hundreds of families from the Abu Shouk camp for internally displaced persons and the Abu Shouk neighborhood to El Fasher University due to heavy gunfire. They returned to their homes in the afternoon after life returned to normal.
Other Details
Adam Ismail Yahya, a community leader in the Abu Shouk neighborhood, told Darfur 24 that dozens of children were separated from their families as they fled due to the exchange of artillery shelling and gunfire.
Yahya indicated that some children are still missing.
In this context, a military source in the Sixth Infantry Division command, who preferred to remain anonymous, told Darfur 24 that the Rapid Support Forces launched the fiercest attack on El Fasher today, but the armed forces and their supporting forces were able to repel the attack.
He indicated that the army and its allies were able to receive 34 new combat vehicles and destroy more than 15 vehicles.
He revealed that dozens of Rapid Support Forces personnel were captured during the fighting, indicating that they would feed the captives from the main meal eaten by most of the city’s residents—a reference to the “Ambaze.”
Most food supplies have been unavailable in El Fasher due to the siege imposed by the Rapid Support Forces since April 2024, which was recently tightened by digging deep trenches around the city. Most of the city’s residents rely on “Ambaze”—the remains of peanuts after their oil has been extracted—as their primary source of food.
There was no official comment from the Rapid Support Forces regarding today’s renewed clashes.
From Sunday evening until Monday morning, the city witnessed a drone flight, followed by violent artillery clashes between the army and the Rapid Support Forces on several fronts.
The fighting was concentrated northward near the Naivasha market, eastward toward the Grand Market, and southward near the livestock market.
Videos verified by Darfur 24 showed fighters from the army and the joint force seizing several combat vehicles and burning others.
Meanwhile, the Rapid Support Forces broadcast recordings of fighters confirming their seizure of a military truck equipped with an anti-aircraft gun and their approach to the army headquarters in the city center after, they said, taking control of surrounding high-rise buildings.
The Rapid Support Forces have been launching continuous attacks on El Fasher since May 2024, in an attempt to seize the Sudanese army’s last stronghold in the Darfur region.