Hundreds of families flee after RSF attacks on villages in Sudan’s Darfur

By Adel Abdelrheem and Betul Yilmaz

KHARTOUM, Sudan / ISTANBUL (AA) – Hundreds of families have been displaced from two villages in western Sudan after attacks from the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), the International Organization of Migration (IOM) said on Monday.

“Some 530 families were displaced from the villages of Abu Hamira and Al-Rakab in North Darfur State due to worsening insecurity between April 1 and 6,” the IOM said in a statement.

The local Abu Shouk Emergency Room said three people, including two children, were injured in RSF shelling of the village on Monday.

There was no immediate comment from the rebel faction on the report.

In recent weeks, the RSF’s territorial control has been shrinking rapidly in favor of the Sudanese army across several states, including Khartoum, Al-Jazira, White Nile, North Kordofan, Sennar, and Blue Nile.

The army and RSF have been fighting a war since April 2023 that has killed more than 20,000 people and displaced 14 million others, according to the UN and local authorities. Research by US scholars, however, estimates the death toll at around 130,000.

The international community and the UN have called for an end to the war, warning of an impending humanitarian catastrophe as millions face famine and death due to food shortages. The conflict has spread to 13 of Sudan’s 18 states.