Sudan Crisis: Thousands in Al Fashir Forced to Eat Animal Feed Amid Total Siege
Al Fashir, Sudan – The humanitarian situation in Al Fashir, the capital of North Darfur, has reached catastrophic levels as thousands of residents are now resorting to eating animal feed to survive a 14-month siege by Sudan’s Rapid Support Forces (RSF). The paramilitary group has sealed off the city—home to over 900,000 people—cutting off food, fuel, and humanitarian aid since last year. The siege intensified following the April 2025 sacking of the Zamzam displacement camp by the RSF, effectively closing the last supply route into the city. Rare footage obtained by Sky News shows deserted streets, abandoned markets, and residents hiding indoors amid frequent shelling. Volunteers use donkey carts to distribute minimal food, as aid convoys have repeatedly come under fire and failed to reach the city. “The markets are destroyed, people are dying, and the RSF attacks continue daily,” said journalist Muammer Ibrahim from inside Al Fashir. “This is a monstrous situation.” Aid agencies, including Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), report that malnutrition rates are ‘catastrophic’, with many families now living in makeshift tents on the city’s outskirts after fleeing the devastated Zamzam camp. Community kitchens offer only small servings of sorghum porridge, insufficient to sustain the population. “There is no food, no work, no aid — and no farming. All signs point to a full-blown famine,” said Mohamed al Doma, treasurer of Al Fashir’s Emergency Response Rooms, who recently fled the city with his family. The IPC Famine Review Committee confirmed famine conditions in parts of Darfur as early as late 2024, and aid groups fear the situation has significantly worsened in Al Fashir since then. Efforts to negotiate aid access remain deadlocked, as the RSF continues its blockade. Aid workers warn that unless humanitarian corridors are urgently established, tens of thousands more lives are at risk.