1,565 displaced in Kordofan: Insecurity on Saturday forced 1,565 people to flee towns in North and South Kordofan, many seeking refuge in White Nile state.

RSF attacks worsen crisis: The Rapid Support Forces’ advances, including the capture of El Fasher, have escalated Sudan’s conflict, displacing millions and causing tens of thousands of deaths.

 

The International Organization for Migration (IOM) reported on Sunday that 1,565 people were displaced on Saturday in Sudan’s South and North Kordofan states due to worsening insecurity.

 

According to the IOM, field teams tracking displacement estimated that 1,205 people fled from the towns of Bara and Um Ruaba in North Kordofan. Of them, 580 were from Bara and 625 from Um Ruaba. The displaced sought refuge in locations within North Kordofan and in several towns in White Nile state.

 

The new wave of displacement follows previous movements in North Kordofan, which saw 36,825 people displaced between 26 and 31 October.

 

In South Kordofan, the IOM said 360 people were displaced on Saturday, including 180 from the town of Al-Abbasia and another 180 from Dallami. Many fled to sites within South Kordofan and to Tendali in White Nile state.

 

The displacement comes amid an ongoing conflict between Sudan’s army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), which erupted in April 2023 over disputes regarding the transitional phase. The war has left tens of thousands dead, displaced nearly 13 million people, and triggered famine in one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises.

 

Recent attacks by the RSF have exacerbated insecurity in Kordofan. On Thursday, Sudanese authorities reported casualties from an RSF drone strike on Zaribat al-Sheikh al-Buray in North Kordofan. On the same day, the independent Sudan Doctors Network reported that RSF forces killed 38 civilians in Um Dam Haj Ahmad.

 

Earlier, RSF attacks on Um Dam Haj Ahmad displaced roughly 1,850 people, according to Sudanese authorities. The RSF has recently taken control of Bara but denies targeting civilians.

 

Beyond Kordofan, RSF forces captured El Fasher, the capital of North Darfur, on 26 October, after an 18-month siege, prompting reports of massacres and human rights violations. RSF now controls all five Darfur states west of Sudan, except for parts of northern North Darfur still under army control and areas held by the Sudan Liberation Movement led by Abdel Wahed Mohamed Nour.

 

Meanwhile, Sudanese army forces maintain control over most of the country’s remaining 13 states, including Khartoum.

 

The United Nations reported tens of thousands of civilians fleeing towns and villages in North Kordofan after RSF seized El Fasher, the last major army stronghold in Darfur. According to the IOM, over 36,000 people have fled five towns and villages in North Kordofan since RSF’s advance.

 

The ongoing war in Sudan between former allies, Army Commander Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and his former deputy, RSF leader Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, has resulted in tens of thousands of deaths and millions displaced, creating one of the world’s most severe humanitarian crises.

 

RSF’s control over El Fasher could solidify its dominance in Darfur’s five states, effectively dividing Sudan into eastern and western spheres, while the army retains control over the northern, eastern, and central regions.