Three out of four army headquarters in each of Darfur’s state capitals have fallen to the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) in Sudan, pushing thousands of people further into peril.
Charity groups report that among the thousands of people crossing the border into Chad this month to escape the violence are many mothers and children with no possessions.
The RSF gains mark the latest developments in the ongoing fighting between the “janjaweed” militia turned paramilitary group and their former security partners, the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF).
The RSF captured the 15th infantry division army headquarters in Ardamata, a suburb of Al Geneina, the capital of West Darfur. This led to a full-blown siege, with videos showing RSF rounding up army soldiers and subjecting them to physical abuse.
Human rights monitors have confirmed that the victims in the videos were civilians from the Masalit tribe who were punished based on their assumed affinity with the army.
Residents of Al Geneina describe the lockdown imposed by the RSF, with roads closed off and people unable to enter or leave the city.
As a result of the violence, thousands of people have fled to Chad, with over 7,000 crossing the border from West Darfur in the first three days of November alone.
The siege of Ardamata by the RSF mirrors their previous siege of Al Geneina in June, which resulted in a city-wide massacre and reports of sexual violence against women.
In Khartoum, entire neighborhoods in Omdurman and Bahri are under siege and cut off from essential resources, with no humanitarian aid or medical care reaching the area.
Peace talks in Jeddah have failed to produce a ceasefire agreement, and both sides have made false ceasefire declarations in the past.
Sudan’s UN representative voted against a fact-finding mission to investigate abuses committed during the conflict.