NY, New York, October 29, 2025 — The IRC warns today that hundreds of thousands of people are in grave danger in and around El Fasher. Despite reports of large numbers of families attempting to flee towards Tawila, IRC teams on the ground have seen fewer than 5,000 arrive. With El Fasher’s remaining civilian population estimated around 250,000 people, this suggests that many may be dead, trapped, or facing severe risks along the route.
IRC teams on the ground spoke with people who recently arrived - they reported walked directly to Tawila from El Fasher, traveling mostly at night on foot. Along the way, they witnessed numerous dead bodies scattered along the route and wounded individuals crying for help.
Displaced families report that men and boys are at particular risk, with disturbing accounts emerging of arbitrary detention, summary executions, and violence. Families who have managed to reach Tawila describe perilous journeys by foot. The stories from and visible injuries among new arrivals are deeply distressing. Multiple testimonies from newly arrived civilians who fled El Fasher said the population faces three main outcomes: being killed, wounded, or detained. Only a few have managed to escape- many families are waiting for missing relatives, with fears that they may never arrive.
David Miliband, President and CEO of the International Rescue Committee, said:
“The fact that we are seeing so few people arriving safely in Tawila should alarm everyone. It raises urgent warnings about what is happening to those trying to flee El Fasher. Safe passage for civilians must be guaranteed, aid must be scaled up and funded now, and all parties must respect their obligation to protect civilians. The world cannot turn away from yet another chapter of horror in Darfur.”
The IRC continues to provide critical humanitarian assistance in Tawila, including emergency health services, water supply, and cash assistance for newly displaced families. Civilians trapped in El Fasher or along transit routes face an almost certain risk to their lives.
The IRC calls for immediate action to ensure the protection and safe passage of civilians fleeing El Fasher, the protection of humanitarian responders, and a scale up of support for those already displaced.
Notes to editors:
- The IRC has been working in Sudan since 2019, providing health, nutrition, protection, and water and sanitation services across multiple states.
- IRC manages five primary healthcare units in Tawila and recently established a mobile health and nutrition team providing services for newly displaced people arriving in Tawila’s reception and transit area. In the last two weeks, IRC also initiated three mobile health teams serving the Um Jalbakh region and is assessing options to expand mobile health services into Korma. Mobile services will be expanded and adapted as needs evolve.
- IRC supports a local partner organization in El Fasher to deliver mobile health and nutrition service. IRC provides emergency water supply in the IDP reception and transit area of Tawila and will continue to scale up this support as the number of new arrivals grows. Across Tawila’s IDP sites, we provide extensive water supply, sanitation, and hygiene services in close coordination with other partners