Statement by the Secretary General of the Danish Refugee Council, on the situation in El Fasher, Sudan

Civilians in El Fasher, local responders and community-based organizations, who keep community kitchens, clinics, and shelters functioning are under extreme danger. The people of El Fasher must not be left to face this crisis alone, their protection is our urgent priority. Safe, rapid and unimpeded humanitarian access must be allowed.  

This outbreak in violence comes on top of a more than a year and a half of siege where an estimated 260,000 inhabitants in El Fasher have been cut off from markets, essential services, and supply routes, leaving them with almost no access to food, clean water, or healthcare.  

DRC’s scoping mission last week in Tawila, a nearby locality hosting most people who have been displaced from El Fasher, found that the humanitarian situation in locations receiving displaced people were already dire.

The people arriving, the majority of whom are women and children, face serious protection risks such as gender-based violence, family separation, and exploitation.

Our partners report a high number of admissions related to sexual and gender-based violence, but their capacities are stretched. Our partners also report that men attempting to flee El Fasher are frequently subjected to abduction, ill-treatment, and extortion.  

Hundreds of newly displaced people have arrived to Tawila overnight, after the recent escalation of violence, with many more expected to follow in the coming days. According to IOM, between 2,500 and 3,000 people have been displaced in the last day and a half due to the clashes in El Fasher.  

DRC calls on all parties to guarantee safe and unimpeded passage for civilians wishing to leave El Fasher, and to allow humanitarian aid to safely enter the area to meet urgent needs.

Attacks on civilians and civilian infrastructure, including hospitals, water systems, markets, mosques, and displacement sites, must cease immediately. These facilities are lifelines for people already facing hunger, disease, and displacement.  

The international community must urgently prioritize three key actions.

• Firstly, it must undertake humanitarian diplomacy for immediate and safe humanitarian access and the protection of civilians.
• Secondly, it must urgently mobilise funding for protection, shelter, and WASH interventions in Tawila and surrounding areas where IDPs reside.
• Finally, it is imperative that local responders who have access to the most affected communities be urgently supported.