The Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) announced on Sunday, June 15, that they had repelled a major assault by the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) on El Fasher, the capital of North Darfur State.
The SAF’s 6th Infantry Division reported heavy casualties among the attacking RSF units, including the destruction of armoured vehicles and the deaths or injuries of dozens of fighters. El Fasher, a strategic city and administrative centre of the Darfur region, has remained the last state capital not under RSF control since the eruption of intense hostilities on 10 May 2024.
Tragically, the violence continues to exact a toll on civilians. North Darfur Governor Al-Hafiz Bakhit confirmed that five displaced persons were killed and 30 others injured when RSF forces shelled a displacement shelter located at the Ministry of Agriculture and Animal Resources in El Fasher. The RSF has yet to respond to these allegations.
The conflict between the SAF and RSF, which began in April 2023, has plunged Sudan into one of the region’s worst humanitarian crises, with tens of thousands killed and millions displaced both internally and across national borders.