El Fasher death toll rises amid RSF shelling and fierce clashes

June 2024 11, 2024 (EL-FASHER) – At least 35 civilians have been killed in El Fasher over the past two days, as heavy artillery shelling by the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) continues to rain down on various neighbourhoods across the city.

The historic capital of the Darfur region has become a battleground, with violent clashes between the Sudanese army, its allied armed movements, and the RSF raging for over a month. The civilian death toll continues to climb daily.

A medical source informed Sudan Tribune that more than 35 civilians were killed in just two days by RSF shelling on densely populated areas, including volunteers working in a charity kitchen in the Tambasi neighbourhood. The Darfur Victims Organisation confirmed on X that eight young volunteers were killed in this incident on Tuesday.

The city’s healthcare system is under immense strain, with El Fasher South Hospital out of service and the Sayyid al-Shuhada Centre severely lacking in medical supplies. Victims of the shelling are being transferred to the army’s medical corps, while others receive treatment at home.

Meanwhile, the RSF persists in its attacks, attempting to push deeper into the city, while the joint forces and popular resistance fighters desperately try to repel the relentless onslaught.

Eyewitnesses have reported intense battles between the RSF and joint forces in the northern, southern, and eastern parts of El Fasher, with both sides employing a wide array of weaponry.

Several neighbourhoods, including Tambasi, the Grand Market vicinity, Basharia, Baringia, Awlad al-Reef, al-Thawra, and Mukarka, have been heavily impacted by the RSF’s artillery shelling, resulting in the destruction of numerous homes and injuries to countless civilians.