Over 36,000 Sudanese have escaped since fall of El Fasher to paramilitary group, says UN agency
More than 36,000 people have fled Sudan's Kordofan region eastern sector of Darfur since Saturday, according to the UN's immigration body.
The important central zone between the country's Darfur areas and the capital region has during recent weeks become the latest battleground in the two-year civil war between the Sudanese army and the paramilitary forces.
Significant Exodus Numbers
An calculated 36,825 people fled five areas in North Kordofan province between 26 October and 31 October, according to the International Organization for Migration.
The people, most on foot, traveled to Tawila, a town to the west of El Fasher that is currently housing in excess of 652,000 displaced people.
Increased Troop Concentration
Local inhabitants of North Kordofan on Monday reported a significant increase in both RSF and army concentration across communities throughout the state.
Both forces are contesting control of El Obeid, the North Kordofan state capital and a key logistics and command center that connects Darfur to Khartoum.
"Today, all our forces have gathered at the Bara front here," commented an RSF member in a recently circulated video declaration.
Local Inhabitants Detail Security Concerns
A resident of Um Smeima, located west of El Obeid, stated that the number of RSF vehicles had grown considerably since the group's seizure of El Fasher.
"We discontinued traveling to our farms, fearing fighting," the resident commented.
Another resident, who asked to remain unnamed for safety concerns, also reported that "there has been a significant rise in army vehicles and weapons west and south of El Obeid" over the past two weeks.
International Warnings and Calls
A senior UN official raised the alarm last week about "large-scale atrocities" and "race-driven revenge attacks" by RSF in Bara.
The diplomat warned of patterns echoing those in Darfur, where RSF fighters have been alleged to commit mass killings, sexual violence and abductions against certain racial groups.
The spiritual head on Sunday urged an quick cessation of hostilities and the creation of aid passageways in Sudan, declaring that attacks on civilians and obstacles to humanitarian aid "are producing unacceptable suffering."
Sudan's diplomatic representative to Egypt on Sunday charged RSF of perpetrating war crimes in El Fasher and declared that the Sudanese government would not negotiate with the militia organization.
The representative further encouraged the global community to categorize the group as a terrorist entity.