El Fasher, Sudan – On Sunday, the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) shelled the densely populated Zamzam displacement camp, located 15 kilometers south of El Fasher in North Darfur, western Sudan. This attack comes just days after the first humanitarian aid truck reached the camp, where displaced residents face the risk of famine.Darfur Governor Minni Arko Minnawi announced the incident on his Facebook page, expressing “regret to inform the public of this sad news” and noting that camp residents are currently under artillery fire from RSF forces.
Minnawi added that “this militia has blatantly chosen to target camp residents on ethnic grounds” and called for divine protection for the displaced in Zamzam. He strongly condemned these “criminal acts.”The El Fasher Resistance Committees Coordination reported on Facebook that “RSF artillery and rocket launchers targeted the camp, amid a lack of media coverage and internet and communications outages.” They described a state of terror in the camp due to indiscriminate shelling, with over 10 rockets falling and reports of injuries and casualties.
Dire Humanitarian Situation Zamzam camp houses over half a million displaced persons, most of whom fled their original homes after the outbreak of armed conflict in the region in 2003.
Since the military escalation in El Fasher in April 2023, about 70% of the city’s population of over one million has been displaced to camps and neighboring villages.
The displaced face significant challenges in accessing food, water, and medicine due to lack of humanitarian aid and basic services. Many children in these camps have lost educational opportunities, threatening their future.
This year’s harsh winter poses an additional threat to Zamzam’s displaced population, who lack adequate protection and heating
.Source: Al Jazeera
