Abdulqadir Abdullah Ali suffered serious nerve damage to his leg during the long siege of the Sudanese city of el-Fasher because he could not get medicine for his diabetes. The 62-year-old walks with a heavy limp, but he was so panicked when fighters from the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) finally captured the city in the western Darfur region, he felt no pain as he ran.
The morning the RSF came there were bullets, many bullets, and explosives going off, he says.
People were out of control [with fear], they ran out of their houses, and everyone ran in different directions, the father, the son, the daughter - running.
The fall of el-Fasher after an 18-month siege is a particularly brutal chapter in Sudan's civil war. The BBC has travelled to a tent camp in northern Sudan set up in army-controlled territory to hear first-hand the stories of those who escaped. The team was monitored by the authorities throughout the visit.
The RSF has been fighting the regular army since April 2023 when a power struggle between them erupted into war. Taking over el-Fasher was a major victory for the paramilitary group, pushing the army out of its last foothold in Darfur. However, evidence of mass atrocities has drawn international condemnation and focused greater American attention on trying to end the conflict.
Survivors at the displacement camp detailed their harrowing escape, with accounts of violent shootings, public executions, and the loss of family members. Abdulqadir recounts horrors including RSF fighters shooting into crowds, trying to run people down with vehicles, and survivors describing the horrors of death and sexual violence as they traversed makeshift escape routes to safety.
As families struggle to register for tents and basic needs in displacement camps, their resilience amid tragedy paints a sobering picture of the ongoing humanitarian crisis in Sudan, with little hope for immediate assistance or resolution to their plight.
The morning the RSF came there were bullets, many bullets, and explosives going off, he says.
People were out of control [with fear], they ran out of their houses, and everyone ran in different directions, the father, the son, the daughter - running.
The fall of el-Fasher after an 18-month siege is a particularly brutal chapter in Sudan's civil war. The BBC has travelled to a tent camp in northern Sudan set up in army-controlled territory to hear first-hand the stories of those who escaped. The team was monitored by the authorities throughout the visit.
The RSF has been fighting the regular army since April 2023 when a power struggle between them erupted into war. Taking over el-Fasher was a major victory for the paramilitary group, pushing the army out of its last foothold in Darfur. However, evidence of mass atrocities has drawn international condemnation and focused greater American attention on trying to end the conflict.
Survivors at the displacement camp detailed their harrowing escape, with accounts of violent shootings, public executions, and the loss of family members. Abdulqadir recounts horrors including RSF fighters shooting into crowds, trying to run people down with vehicles, and survivors describing the horrors of death and sexual violence as they traversed makeshift escape routes to safety.
As families struggle to register for tents and basic needs in displacement camps, their resilience amid tragedy paints a sobering picture of the ongoing humanitarian crisis in Sudan, with little hope for immediate assistance or resolution to their plight.
