05-08-2025
Inside Sudan's besieged city of Al-Fashir as famine takes hold
Listen to Australian and world news, and follow trending topics with SBS News Podcasts . Women praying -singing in Arabic A prayer for food in Sudan's besieged city of Al-Fashir. The city has been cut off from the world by the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces for more than 15 months. Mohamed Dodah, a refugee and Zaghawa community leader, says daily battles have wreaked havoc on the capital of the North Darfur region. "One and a half million civilians are suffering from the ravages of artillery and drone shelling, as well as shrapnel from the fighting on the outskirts of the city." But it's not the fighting that has most civilians in the city concerned. "Frankly, the citizens are suffering extremely harshly, especially in Autumn. These houses do not provide shelter or cover. These children are not eating, even the main meal is not available." The United Nations says half of Sudan's 50 million population is facing acute hunger after more than two years of civil war between R-S-F militants and the Sudanese army. In the western region of Darfur the U-N has declared famine in 11 locations, with UNICEF estimating more than 330,000 people are facing malnutrition in the city of Al-Fashir alone due to a total blockade of aid by R-S-F militants. Nathaniel Raymond, a human rights investigator who leads the Yale Humanitarian Research Lab, has worked with the U-N to better understand the hunger crisis. " In Gaza, people have been without aid delivery for three months. In the case of Al-Fashir, they have been in a state of humanitarian siege now since the spring of 2024 so over a year. The famine review committee of the United Nations declared an IPC five event, which is the highest degree of famine, which our team at the Humanitarian Research Lab at Yale assisted them in declaring the situation." UN spokesman Farhan Haq says civilians in Al-Fashir are at a breaking point. "Local sources say people are dying from hunger and malnutrition. Community-run kitchens have shut down due to lack of food stocks, and some residents have reportedly resorted to consuming animal feed." Mohamed Dodah says peanut oil waste, typically used for pet feed, is the primary source of food in Al-Fashir and locals are allowed only one meal a day. "If you got eat breakfast, you'll wait for next day to eat another meal even if breakfast or lunch. They're suffering right now. They're dying daily." As a child, Mohamed's village was destroyed by Arab militias who targeted his tribe, the Zaghawa people, along with the Masalit and Fur tribes. These militias later became the Rapid Support Forces. In April, the RSF raided Mohamed's home in the Zamzam displacement camp, where he says they set fire to the camp and even killed foreign aid workers. "The entire Relief International staff had been wiped out, including the camp director and nine other employees. I found their bodies stacked, each with a bullet wound to the head." Mohamed fled to the last city in Darfur not under RSF control - Al-Fashir. While both the military and the RSF have been accused of war crimes in the current conflict, some human rights groups as well as the United States say the paramilitary group has committed genocide in Darfur - a claim the militia denies. Nathaniel Raymond's team at Yale have monitored alleged war crimes in Darfur using ultra high resolution satellites and sensors provided by NASA and the European Space Agency. "It's very easy to make assessments due to the remote sensing data. We monitor cemeteries and Al-Fashir and over the past year those cemeteries have been growing exponentially. We can watch them bury their loved ones from space. Additionally, we can see damage to feeding centres, hospitals, mosques, and other critical humanitarian infrastructure. We are watching Al-Fashir be murdered from 450 miles above the Earth's service." Algaly Abdelrasoul lives in Sydney but his uncle, aunt and extended family are trapped in the city. He's only able to get through to his uncle on occasion, hearing glimpses of the violence. "So basically he says this one's doing well. This one has passed away. This one's wounded. This one is gone somewhere. This one we haven't spoken to, we don't know where they are. This is kind of the norm. I say tell me more. What is happening? How are you feeling? He just tells me, you know what, we just survived another day. He sees it as I just need to survive." When asked if it's possible for his uncle to escape the starved city, which is surrounded by the RSF, he says there's no safe way out of Al-Fashir. "Men, you can't. Women and kids, if they show mercy and that's a risk. They might kill you, they might rape you. If they feel like letting you go, if you're lucky enough, you might be able to escape to a surroundings town. It's a very delicate situation. Because if you stay in, if you're not being killed by the RSF, you're dying of hunger, starvation, lack of medical assistance is also a big issue. They're just holding on for dear life." But the Sudanese Armed Forces and the civilians within the city may not be able to hold out for much longer. "At this point, it's a matter of time unless there's a major change in SAF's military strength. Most of the city has been reduced to rubble. By our calculations, more than 40 per cent of the city has been destroyed by RSF bombardment and attacks and Sudan, armed forces airstrikes and artillery bombardment to try to target the rapid support forces. The civilians have been caught in the crossfire at this point. There is no food in the city." Mohamed Dodah believes he will be killed, or at a minimum held hostage, if the city falls. "If they control Al-Fashir, there will be killing and raping and kidnapping. Firstly, they will kill the leaders. They will catch me, put me in a prison and - if not kill me - you will need money to free me." And after peace talks between regional powers broke down in Washington last week, the desperate civilians of Al-Fashir are begging the world to intervene and finally break the 15-month siege.
"If you don't rescue us, I swear by God, no treatment or hospitals are available, only death. We have nothing left for us but death."
