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As stated by the UNHCR, over 60,000 civilians have fled the Sudanese city of el-Fasher, which was seized by the militia Rapid Support Forces recently.

Reports indicate multiple executions and crimes against humanity as militia members took control of the city following an year-and-a-half encirclement characterized by food shortages and heavy bombardment.

The movement of those escaping the conflict towards the town of Tawila, approximately 80km (50 miles) west of el-Fasher, had accelerated in the recent days, per UNHCR spokesperson.

Survivors were describing shocking accounts of atrocities, including sexual violence, and the organization was having trouble to find sufficient accommodation and nourishment for them.

Each child was suffering from undernourishment, she added.

Estimates suggest that over 150,000 individuals are currently unable to leave in el-Fasher, which had been the military's final stronghold in the western region of Darfur.

The RSF has denied broad claims that the killings in el-Fasher are based on ethnic factors and follow a pattern of the Arab paramilitaries targeting non-Arab populations.

Nevertheless the paramilitary group has arrested one of its militiamen, Abu Lulu, who has been accused of extrajudicial killings.

The group distributed video depicting the militiaman's detention subsequent to verification that he was involved in the death of multiple civilians in the vicinity of el-Fasher.

Video sharing service has acknowledged that it has suspended the profile connected to Lulu. It is not clear whether he had controlled the account in his name.

Sudan was plunged into a domestic fighting in April 2023 when a intense contest for control broke out between its army and the Rapid Support Forces.

This has resulted in a famine and accusations of genocide in the western Sudan.

Over 150,000 people have lost their lives in the conflict throughout the country, and approximately 12 million have left their homes in what the United Nations has termed the biggest global humanitarian disaster.

The takeover of el-Fasher reinforces the territorial division in the country, with the Rapid Support Forces now in control of western Sudan and much of neighbouring Kordofan to the south, and the army holding the main city, Khartoum, the center and east along the coastal region.

The two warring rivals had been partners - gaining control together in a seizure of power in 2021 - but split over an globally supported initiative to advance to civilian rule.