Sudan's Descent into Chaos: A Doctor's Harrowing Escape from El-Fasher
The streets of El-Fasher, once home to the Sudanese army's last stronghold in North Darfur, have seen unimaginable horror. The city fell to the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) on October 26, marking the end of an 18-month siege. For a young doctor named Mohamed Ibrahim, the ordeal was nothing short of apocalyptic.
Ibrahim recounts fleeing the city's last functioning hospital as bullets rained down around him. "We moved from house to house, from wall to wall under nonstop bombardment," he said, his voice trembling with fear. The sounds of gunfire and screams still echo in his mind: "Bullets were flying from all directions." It was a senseless chaos that seemed to be directed at innocent civilians.
As the RSF fighters swarmed into the city, they systematically hunted down civilians, mowing them down with vehicles. Ibrahim saw people running in terror, their faces frozen in fear as they scrambled over walls and hid in trenches. For him, it felt like he was staring into his own death. "It was a despicable feeling," he said, shaking his head in disgust. "How can el-Fasher fall? Is it over?" The sense of hopelessness was crushing.
Within hours, the RSF fighters had stormed homes, demanding phones at gunpoint and looting property. Satellite imagery has revealed the devastating aftermath: at least 150 clusters of objects consistent with human remains have been identified between October 26 and November 1.
The regime's campaign of mass killings and ethnic cleansing has sparked war crimes investigations and international sanctions. Nazhat Shameem Khan, deputy prosecutor of the International Criminal Court, described the scene as "appalling," stating that "organised, widespread mass criminality" had been used to assert control.
For Ibrahim, the ordeal was not just about survival but also about betrayal. He was captured by RSF fighters and held for ransom, with his family ultimately paying $8,000 to secure his release. The doctor's experience serves as a stark reminder of the human cost of conflict and the need for accountability.
As the world struggles to comprehend the scale of this crisis, one thing is clear: El-Fasher has become a symbol of the region's descent into chaos.
The streets of El-Fasher, once home to the Sudanese army's last stronghold in North Darfur, have seen unimaginable horror. The city fell to the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) on October 26, marking the end of an 18-month siege. For a young doctor named Mohamed Ibrahim, the ordeal was nothing short of apocalyptic.
Ibrahim recounts fleeing the city's last functioning hospital as bullets rained down around him. "We moved from house to house, from wall to wall under nonstop bombardment," he said, his voice trembling with fear. The sounds of gunfire and screams still echo in his mind: "Bullets were flying from all directions." It was a senseless chaos that seemed to be directed at innocent civilians.
As the RSF fighters swarmed into the city, they systematically hunted down civilians, mowing them down with vehicles. Ibrahim saw people running in terror, their faces frozen in fear as they scrambled over walls and hid in trenches. For him, it felt like he was staring into his own death. "It was a despicable feeling," he said, shaking his head in disgust. "How can el-Fasher fall? Is it over?" The sense of hopelessness was crushing.
Within hours, the RSF fighters had stormed homes, demanding phones at gunpoint and looting property. Satellite imagery has revealed the devastating aftermath: at least 150 clusters of objects consistent with human remains have been identified between October 26 and November 1.
The regime's campaign of mass killings and ethnic cleansing has sparked war crimes investigations and international sanctions. Nazhat Shameem Khan, deputy prosecutor of the International Criminal Court, described the scene as "appalling," stating that "organised, widespread mass criminality" had been used to assert control.
For Ibrahim, the ordeal was not just about survival but also about betrayal. He was captured by RSF fighters and held for ransom, with his family ultimately paying $8,000 to secure his release. The doctor's experience serves as a stark reminder of the human cost of conflict and the need for accountability.
As the world struggles to comprehend the scale of this crisis, one thing is clear: El-Fasher has become a symbol of the region's descent into chaos.