Article: El Fasher Under Siege - What UN Analysts Are Reporting from Darfur
RSF units have kept El Fasher under blockade since July 2025. Why the city matters strategically, what still works, and why UN convoys barely get through.
Key takeaways
- About 1.2 million civilians are trapped in El Fasher, according to UNOCHA.
- The RSF controls supply routes to Mellit and Kutum and is using hunger as a weapon.
- The UN is calling for a humanitarian air bridge, but security risks and missing approvals are blocking it.
The strategic position of El Fasher
El Fasher is the last major city in Darfur still held by the Sudanese army. It sits at the junction of trade routes running toward Chad and central Darfur. Whoever controls El Fasher controls access to aid depots and airfields.
Since July 2025, RSF brigades have mined the roads toward Mellit, Tawila, and Nyala. Drone footage from UNOSAT shows burned-out convoys on the N5 and N7, pointing to deliberate attacks on relief supplies.
Humanitarian conditions in November 2025
UNOCHA reports 1.2 million trapped people, including 300,000 displaced residents who have lived in improvised camps since 2023. Water access has fallen to 30 percent of prewar capacity because pumping stations were destroyed.
Medical facilities are overwhelmed. The only hospital still functioning is running on diesel generators, and Doctors Without Borders says the remaining fuel will last for only two more weeks.
- The WHO has recorded new cholera cases in the city for the first time in months.
- 47 percent of children under five in the survey are acutely malnourished.
- UNICEF says 40 babies are being born every day without adequate medical support.
A diplomatic dead end
The African Union called for a demilitarized zone around El Fasher in early November. The RSF ignored the appeal, while the army kept flying strikes against suspected RSF positions, often near civilian areas.
The UN Security Council is discussing a humanitarian air bridge, but the lack of guarantees from both sides has blocked implementation so far. At the same time, Egypt is obstructing additional sanctions against RSF-linked business networks.
What could happen next
If no air bridge is set up, IPC analysis suggests El Fasher could fall into Phase 5 famine conditions by January 2026. Local mediators are proposing limited corridors under religious supervision.
In the longer term, an RSF breakthrough toward El Obeid could open the entire western corridor, which would dramatically increase pressure on the remaining army bases. Observers warn that Darfur would then fall fully under RSF control.