Sudan: The Commission for Human Rights calls for lifting the siege on El Fasher to avoid deepening the humanitarian catastrophe

In a statement issued today, Friday, Mr. Türk urged all parties to the conflict to stop attacks on civilians and civilian objects and to comply with their duties and obligations under international law.

This came as a report issued by his office stated that the ongoing siege and ongoing hostilities in El Fasher resulted in the killing of at least 782 civilians and the injury of more than 1,143 others. The commission said that the siege, which began seven months ago, turned the city into a battlefield between the Rapid Support Forces, the Sudanese Armed Forces and their allied forces.

Based on interviews with 52 people who managed to flee El Fasher, the report reported regular and intense bombing of densely populated residential areas by the Rapid Support Forces, and frequent air strikes and artillery shelling by the Sudanese Armed Forces and their allies. He warned against attacks on civilians and civilian objects “It may amount to war crimes.”

The report of the High Commissioner for Human Rights documents the major escalation that took place in June, which resulted in the killing of dozens of civilians “Inside their homes, in markets and streets, and around hospitals.” The report referred to the Al-Thawra neighborhood in the south, where residents could not reach it “From collecting the bodies of those who died in the streets for several days, due to continuous bombing and heavy exchanges of fire.”

The report said that the Saudi Maternity Hospital – which is currently the only remaining public hospital in El Fasher capable of providing surgical operations and sexual and reproductive health services – had been subjected to repeated bombardment by the Rapid Support Forces, while the report documented an increase in cases of sexual violence since the beginning of the siege.

Disaster looms

The UNHCR said that the Zamzam camp for displaced people adjacent to the city – which houses hundreds of thousands of displaced people – is witnessing an increasing presence of joint forces allied with the Sudanese Armed Forces, and it was bombed six times by the Rapid Support Forces, killing at least 15 displaced people. She warned that this – and the parallel mobilization of fighters on tribal lines by parties to the conflict across Darfur – indicates that preparations may be underway for further hostilities.

In this context, the High Commissioner said: “Any large-scale attack on Zamzam camp and the city of El Fasher would increase civilian suffering to catastrophic levels, and deepen the already dire humanitarian situation, including famine conditions. Every effort must be made, including by the international community, to prevent such an attack and end “Siege.”

Mr. Türk also called on all parties to the conflict to adopt mediation efforts in good faith, with the aim of immediately stopping hostilities.