• Sudanese RSF attacked the Abu Shouk displacement camp, killing at least 40 civilians.
• The assault was described as a brutal escalation in the ongoing civil war.
• More than 60 recent deaths from malnutrition reported among displaced populations.
• UN calls for humanitarian access and protection of civilians in conflict zones.
• The conflict has displaced over 12 million people across the country.

On August 12, the Sudanese paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) launched a violent assault on the Abu Shouk displacement camp, near el-Fasher, resulting in at least 40 civilian deaths and injuries to 19 others, according to local rights groups and the Emergency Response Room. This incident marks another tragic escalation in a civil war that has already displaced millions and pushed vulnerable populations to the brink of starvation, as stated by Africanews and Al Jazeera.

The attack occurred within a camp that houses around 450,000 displaced individuals, which has been targeted multiple times since hostilities began in April 2023. Witness accounts indicate that RSF fighters were firing indiscriminately at civilians, with reports of people being shot in their homes and on the streets, as detailed by BBC and Africanews.

The situation in el-Fasher is increasingly dire, with the UN reporting that over 60 individuals, primarily women and children, have died from malnutrition within a single week as the RSF has effectively besieged the area. The RSF has blocked escape routes, trapping civilians amid escalating violence, highlighting a deepening humanitarian crisis that has already seen famine declared in parts of the region, according to AllAfrica and Al Jazeera.

In response to the escalating violence, Sheldon Yett, the UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator in Sudan, condemned the attacks on civilians and reiterated the need for safe passage and unrestricted humanitarian access. He emphasized that "deliberate attacks against civilians are strictly prohibited" under international humanitarian law, urging immediate actions to protect those trapped in conflict zones, as echoed by AllAfrica and BBC.