(MENAFN) More than 81,000 civilians have abandoned El-Fasher city and surrounding settlements in Sudan's North Darfur state since Oct. 26 as combat and lawlessness intensify, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) announced Wednesday.

The UN agency's Displacement Tracking Matrix calculated that 81,817 individuals escaped El-Fasher and adjacent zones, though officials emphasized the totals are "preliminary and subject to change due to ongoing insecurity and rapidly evolving displacement dynamics."

The majority of evacuees remain within El-Fasher locality boundaries, while smaller cohorts relocated to Kabkabiya, Mellit, Kutum, and Tawila localities in North Darfur, the IOM reported.

Additional displacement was documented across multiple Sudanese states: Kosti in White Nile state; Ghbeish in West Kordofan; central and northern Jebel Marra in Central Darfur; West Al-Junaynah and Kulbus in West Darfur; Shaeria in East Darfur; and East Jebel and Al-Wihda in South Darfur, according to the statement.

Field operatives documented "extreme insecurity along the roads, obstructing movement," the IOM stated, noting the situation "remains tense and volatile with persistent insecurity and ongoing population movements."

RSF Seizure Triggers Partition Fears
The paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) seized El-Fasher—North Darfur state's capital and a strategically vital regional hub—on Oct. 26, executing civilian massacres according to local and international organizations. The takeover sparked warnings that territorial control could solidify a geographic division of the conflict-ravaged nation.

The UN Children's Fund (UNICEF) cautioned that assistance requirements for families fleeing El-Fasher toward Tawila "are growing faster than the resources available."

Households escaping violence reach Tawila "exhausted, hungry and in urgent need of care," the agency stated, noting it collaborates with partners to deliver therapeutic feeding, water supplies, and pediatric health services.

"But the needs are increasing at a pace that exceeds available resources, and current aid is not enough to meet them," the agency said.

Territory Split Along Factional Lines
Among Sudan's 18 states, the RSF currently commands all five Darfur region states in the west, excluding northern pockets in North Darfur held by army forces. The Sudanese army governs most of the remaining 13 states spanning southern, northern, eastern, and central territories, including capital Khartoum.

Since April 15, 2023, the Sudanese army and RSF have waged warfare that regional and international mediation efforts have failed to halt. The conflict has claimed thousands of lives and uprooted millions.

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