Sudan’s paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) announced on Sunday that it had seized full control of the famine-hit Zamzam displacement camp in Darfur, following two days of intense shelling and ground fighting.
The RSF said in a statement issued on Sunday, April 13, 2025, that it had deployed forces to “secure civilians and humanitarian medical workers in Zamzam” after wresting control from the army, which it accused of using the camp as a base and civilians as human shields.
Zamzam, which hosts more than 500,000 displaced people according to UN figures, has been severely affected during the two-year civil war between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the RSF.
The camp, along with nearby Abu Shouk and the besieged city of El-Fasher, has been under sustained attack since Friday, as the RSF attempts to capture the last major city in Darfur not under its control.
The UN reported over 100 deaths in the RSF’s latest assault, while a faction loyal to Darfur’s governor, Minni Minnawi, claimed more than 400 were killed—a figure that could not be independently verified.
Local activists said at least 46 civilians, including women and children, were confirmed dead in Zamzam, although communication blackouts have hampered efforts to assess the full scale of the devastation.
Despite RSF denials, survivors and local groups accused the paramilitary force of targeting civilians. Thousands of people were seen fleeing Zamzam, seeking refuge in surrounding areas.
One survivor, Abdallah Adam, told AFP he walked for three days to reach safety in Tawila, 80 kilometres west of the camp. “We fled the bombing and hunger after we ran out of food. Now, we are living under a tree,” he said.
Amany al-Tayeb Dawood, displaced for the second time, described a similar ordeal. “Last month, we left El-Fasher for Zamzam, fearing the fighting there. But then, the shelling reached Zamzam, too.” She and her family are now sheltering in Tawila without food or supplies.
The RSF has intensified its push around El-Fasher in recent weeks, particularly after the Sudanese army recaptured Khartoum last month, some 1,000 kilometres to the east.
Meanwhile, further reports of ethnic violence emerged from the town of Um Kadadah, around 180 kilometres east of El-Fasher.
Local resistance committees accused the RSF of killing 56 civilians over two days of assaults, describing the killings as ethnically motivated.
A list of victims, including the town’s hospital director, was released, and the committee said the RSF had forcibly displaced residents and shut down all communications.
At least 14 people remain unaccounted for.
The United States has imposed sanctions on both sides, accusing the RSF of committing genocide in Darfur and the Sudanese army of targeting civilians.
The conflict has effectively split Sudan, with the army controlling the north and east, while the RSF dominates Darfur and parts of the south.
The war has killed tens of thousands, displaced over 12 million people, and created what the UN has described as the world’s worst humanitarian crisis.
