Ali Khan
September 27, 2025: The capital of North Darfur, El Fasher, has been under siege for over 500 days, with Rapid Support Forces (RSF) blocking access to the city. The prolonged blockade has left residents struggling for food, medicine, fuel, and water. In a striking indicator of the crisis, donkey carts—used to transport goods—are now more expensive than new vehicles, highlighting both scarcity and desperation among the population.
International aid organizations report that no humanitarian assistance has entered the city since May, and the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) has warned that food insecurity and famine risks are escalating.
Residents describe extreme hardship: “We are eating leaves, grass, even animal feed to survive,” said one local. Health workers report that malnutrition and disease rates among children have reached alarming levels.
The crisis has drawn serious concern from the UN Human Rights Commission and other international agencies, calling on the RSF to lift the blockade and open humanitarian corridors for aid delivery.
El Fasher’s situation reflects the ongoing conflict and ethnic violence in the Darfur region, emphasizing the urgent need for rapid international intervention to prevent further humanitarian catastrophe.
