United Nations: Civilians at Risk in El Fasher City and Surroundings

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The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs warned that the escalating violence around El Fasher city has been behind ongoing obstacles to aid access, hindering the continuous flow of relief and essential goods, "pushing people to the brink of famine."

It noted that dozens of civilians were killed in renewed intense fighting on Friday between the Sudanese armed forces and the Rapid Support Forces in the city and its surroundings.

The UN humanitarian coordination office said in an update released today, Monday, that reports indicated a large number of people displaced from the eastern and northwestern parts of El Fasher city to areas south of the city.

According to the International Organization for Migration data, approximately 570,000 people have been displaced in North Darfur state over the past 13 months, with 6.7 million internally displaced.

Martin Griffiths, the Deputy Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs, stated in a release today, Monday, that reports indicated damage to a hospital in North Darfur due to a sharp escalation in hostile activities, resulting in the deaths of two children.

Griffiths reported on AX platform that an airstrike destroyed the roof of the intensive care unit at the southern hospital in El Fasher city, the only functioning hospital in North Darfur state where medical supplies are dangerously low.

The UN official stated that around 800,000 people live in El Fasher city and its surroundings where "countless lives are at risk. Sudan is at a tipping point."

The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs pointed out that in Darfur alone, about nine million people need humanitarian assistance today. The number of people in need of assistance across Sudan is 24.8 million, nearly one in every two people in the country.