(MENAFN) Nearly 89,000 people have been forced to flee El-Fasher, the capital of North Darfur in western Sudan, following the city’s takeover by the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) last month, according to the United Nations migration agency.

The International Organization for Migration (IOM) reported Sunday that its Displacement Tracking Matrix recorded 7,075 new displacements from El-Fasher between November 5 and 8 as insecurity intensified. Many of those fleeing have sought refuge in nearby towns including Tawila, Mellit, and Saraf Omra.

Since the RSF seized control of El-Fasher on October 26, approximately 88,892 civilians have left the city, the agency said, highlighting the perilous conditions along roads that could hinder evacuation efforts.

The takeover of El-Fasher by the RSF has been accompanied by ethnically targeted violence, according to both local and international observers, raising fears that the assault may deepen Sudan’s regional divisions.

The latest displacements are part of the broader conflict that erupted on April 15, 2023, when Sudanese army forces and the RSF engaged in open warfare. Despite regional and international mediation efforts, the fighting has claimed thousands of lives and forced millions to leave their homes.

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