UN: 1,150 people fled four villages in North Darfur in three days

New displacements in the Um Baru locality

The International Organization for Migration (IOM) reported on Sunday that its field teams recorded the displacement of another 1,150 people from four villages — Muzbat, Oreri, Tari and Umm Haraz — in the Um Baru locality of North Darfur state between October 29 and 31. The cause was cited as deteriorating security conditions, Anadolu reports.

Where people are fleeing and what is happening in the region

According to the agency, some of the affected families moved to other locations within the same locality, while others crossed the border into Chad. IOM noted that the security situation remains extremely tense and unstable. Notably, this is not the first report this week: earlier, on Monday, the organization reported 895 displaced people from three villages in Um Baru on October 24 — meaning the new 1,150 people are a continuation of a series of displacements in the same locality.

Context of the conflict

IOM recalls that the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) and the Sudanese army have been fighting since April 2023 over a dispute about the integration of the paramilitary group into the armed forces. The conflict has claimed tens of thousands of lives and displaced 13 million people. The RSF controls five states of Darfur, except for parts of North and West Darfur that remain under army control; the army holds most of the country's other states, including the capital Khartoum. Darfur occupies roughly one fifth of Sudan's territory of more than 1.8 million square kilometers, and the majority of the country's 53 million residents live in army-controlled areas.