Thousands flee North Darfur, North Kordofan amid RSF attacks, says Sudanese commissioner

By Adel Abdelrheem, Ahmed Satti and Rania Abu Shamala

KHARTOUM, Sudan/ISTANBUL (AA) – Tens of thousands of displaced civilians have fled North Darfur and North Kordofan due to ongoing attacks by the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), the Sudanese Humanitarian Aid Commission said Sunday.

Speaking to Anadolu, Commissioner Salwa Adam Benia said the displaced civilians have fled to the cities of Dongola in Northern State and El-Obeid in North Kordofan.

Benia made the comments following a meeting with Turkish Ambassador Fatih Yildiz and Hamza Taşdelen, the deputy president of Türkiye’s Disaster and Emergency Management Authority (AFAD) in Port Sudan.

She expressed gratitude to Türkiye, its institutions, and civil society organizations for standing by the Sudanese people in the current crisis.

“On behalf of the Sudanese people, I thank Türkiye and its organizations for reaching us in this difficult time when we are in dire need of genuine support.”

Benia noted that there is now massive displacement from North Darfur and North Kordofan to several cities, particularly to Dongola, stressing that the numbers are rising daily.

The three Kordofan states, North, West, and South, have witnessed intense fighting between the Sudanese army and the RSF in recent days.

The commissioner said El-Obeid city has received more than 175,000 displaced people from the three Kordofan states over the past month.

She noted that displaced families from Darfur and Kordofan have reached several other states, including Gadaref and Kassala in eastern Sudan, where over 3,000 displaced people have arrived in Kassala alone.

Since April 15, 2023, the Sudanese army and the RSF have been locked in a war that regional and international mediations have failed to end. The conflict has killed thousands of people and displaced millions of others.