Clashes between the Sudanese armed forces and paramilitaries have resulted in the death of at least 25 civilians in El Faser, a city in the state of North Darfur, which for some time remained unscathed by the war and hosts a large number of refugees, announced yesterday a third committee of lawyers fighting for the restoration of democracy in Sudan.

The town and nearby villages have suffered “indiscriminate shelling and airstrikes” for days, according to Emergency Lawyers, which has been documenting atrocities against civilians since the war broke out a year ago between the army and the Rapid Support Forces. (DTY).

The UN and the US are warning that the spread of war to El Faser, the only capital of Darfur’s five states that has not fallen into the hands of the UN, would be devastating for the hundreds of thousands of internally displaced people there, already in very precarious conditions.

El Fasher is a hub for humanitarian and non-governmental organizations in Darfur, home to nearly a quarter of Sudan’s 48 million people and where atrocities are often committed.

Eyewitnesses in the Abu Souk displaced persons camp, not far from El Fasher, said they saw hundreds of people fleeing and heading for the city yesterday after hostilities.

“Dozens of wounded have been taken to hospital,” a medical source at a health facility in El Fasser told AFP, who asked not to be named to avoid retaliation from the warring factions, who are known to target medical staff.

Last year, residents of Darfur and the United Nations complained that reception centers for displaced people were systematically besieged and attacked by the warring parties. Health infrastructure in Darfur, already fragile, has been destroyed.

“We are facing a great shortage of blood and medical personnel,” the medical source underlined.

Both sides are accused of war crimes, notably targeting civilians and aid workers, bombing populated areas and engaging in torture and sexual violence.

The war in Sudan, which broke out on April 15 between the armed forces and the DTY, has claimed thousands of lives and forcibly displaced more than 8.5 million civilians, according to the UN.