UN urges safe passage for “trapped, terrified” civilians in Sudan’s El-Fasher

The United Nations has called for safe passage for “trapped and terrified” civilians in Sudan’s El-Fasher, following claims by the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) on October 26 that they had taken full control of the city.

UN humanitarian chief Tom Fletcher expressed deep alarm over reports of civilian casualties and mass displacement amid fierce fighting in El-Fasher — the last major urban center in western Darfur not previously under RSF control, UN News reports.

“With fighters pushing further into the city and escape routes cut off, hundreds of thousands of civilians are trapped and terrified — shelled, starving, and without access to food, healthcare, or safety,” Fletcher said in a statement.

He stressed that civilians must be granted safe passage and access to humanitarian aid.

“Those fleeing to safer areas must be allowed to do so safely and in dignity,” he added.

Fletcher also underscored the need to protect those who remain in the city, including local responders, and demanded an immediate halt to attacks on civilians, hospitals, and humanitarian operations.

According to the UN, approximately 260,000 civilians—half of them children—remain stranded in El-Fasher without food or humanitarian assistance.

“Safe, rapid, and unimpeded humanitarian access must be allowed to reach all civilians in need,” Fletcher said. “We have lifesaving supplies ready, but intensified attacks have made it impossible for us to get aid in.”

Calling for an immediate ceasefire in El-Fasher, across Darfur, and throughout Sudan, Fletcher emphasized that those responsible for violations of international humanitarian and human rights law must be held accountable.

Sudan’s two-year war between the army and the RSF has already claimed tens of thousands of lives and displaced nearly 12 million people, creating one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises.

By Vafa Guliyeva