Sudan's RSF claims control of major Darfur camp, civilians flee

CAIRO (Reuters) - Sudan's Rapid Support Forces (RSF) seized control of a major camp for displaced people in North Darfur, the paramilitary group said on Sunday, after a four-day assault the government and aid groups have said left hundreds dead or wounded.

The fighting has centred around the Zamzam camp, which, along with the nearby Abu Shouk camp, hosts some 700,000 people displaced by Sudan's war. The assault has destroyed shelters, markets, and healthcare facilities, aid groups said.

The RSF said the camp was being used as a base by what it called "mercenary factions". But humanitarian groups denounced the assault as a targeted attack on vulnerable civilians, including women, children and elderly people, who are already facing famine.

The Sudan Liberation Army (SLA), a Darfur militia allied to the national army, has been fighting the RSF around the city of al-Fashir, around 15 km (9.3 miles) from Zamzam, with the help of other local armed groups.

Tens of thousands of camp residents have fled to al-Fashir on foot, overwhelming shelters, and are now sleeping outdoors without food, water, or medicine, SLA spokesperson El-Sadiq Ali El-Nour said on Sunday.

The city - the capital of Sudan's North Darfur province - came under heavy shelling and RSF ground attacks on Sunday, the SLA said, calling for military support from Sudan's armed forces and allied factions.

The Sudanese army has a base with several thousand troops in al-Fashir.

"The leadership of the armed forces must act swiftly to save the lives of approximately 1.5 million people in al-Fashir urgently," the SLA said in a statement. "Darfur must not fight alone."

The RSF has denied targeting civilians and, on Saturday, accused its rivals of orchestrating a media campaign using actors and staged scenes within the camp to falsely incriminate it.

On Sunday, it said it had organised voluntary evacuations for families fleeing al-Fashir and surrounding camps and welcomed humanitarian agencies to respond to the deteriorating conditions.

The war in Sudan erupted in April 2023, sparked by a power struggle between the army and the RSF, shattering hopes for a transition to civilian rule.

The conflict has since displaced millions‮ ‬and devastated regions like Darfur, where the RSF is now fighting to maintain its stronghold amid army advances in Khartoum.

(Reporting by Khalid Abdelaziz; Writing by Mohamed Ezz; Editing by Joe Bavier)