Team Zamzam Monthly Report (15 July to August 15, 2024), from the Coordinating Counselor
(translated by Gaffar Mohammud Saeneen)
Introduction
Since the beginning of the war on April 15, 2023, brigades of the criminal Rapid Support Forces and other affiliated militias have taken citizens and the nation hostage amid the indifference and almost complete silence on the part of the international community. This is so despite massacres, ethnic displacement, rape, and the obstruction of critical humanitarian aid. Too many of the regional and international actors are complicit. Indeed, some media channels and outlets affiliated with the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) are attempting to consolidate support for the project of Hamdan Dagalo (Hemedti), which is driven entirely by greed, arrogance, and a sense of ethnic superiority.
Zamzam camp for displaced persons remains a pioneer of popular resistance in protecting human rights and the rights of displaced persons, including the many hundreds of thousand displaced before the war of April 15, 2023. This war has led to the dispersal of city populations, the blocking of roads for carrying humanitarian aid essential for human survival. The RSF maintain a cruel siege of the city of El Fasher, and ruthlessly use hunger and disease as a weapon of war. Such actions are violations of all humanitarian human rights and humanitarian law. But El Fasher, and like other cities, the countryside, and camps for the displaced remain steadfast in the face of the Janjaweed assaults.
During more than a year of the war, we in Zamzam have received people fleeing from their homes in all five states. Most of the newly displaced in Zamzam are forced to live in shelters located in forty-seven schools; the population has swollen to an area exceeding three times its capacity. The youths and volunteers of the camp have continued to serve these centers with food, drink, and other necessary supplies during the harsh winter and the hot rainy season.
On August 4, at 11:33 am, the people of Zamzam Camp heard the sound of shells in more than one place inside Zamzam Camp, which was not surprising to people given its proximity to the El Fasher battlefield. It is our usual daily routine to receive civilians injured as a result of the violent bombing of neighborhoods, shelter centers, and hospitals on El Fasher, attacked with rocket-propelled grenades and other weapons. This coincided with the presence of heavy air traffic in the skies over Zamzam camp, but fortunately, this frightening situation does not continue. There have been four airdrops in various places in the camp, which led to the injury of several persons and the demolition of a very large number of displaced persons homes.
We, as Team Zamzam, have been working to monitor the situation for more than four years in light of these challenges, and we have never witnessed before dangers so great. We strongly condemn all forms of violations of the rights of displaced people and remind the combatants to stop trading on the plight of innocent human beings, especially around displacement issues. We remain concerned that humanitarian issues will serve as a Trojan horse to advance the hidden agendas of both combatants.
We appeal to effective humanitarian actors and those free of hidden agendas to intervene immediately to address the vast humanitarian crisis caused by displacement in Zamzam, as well as other camps and shelter centers. It is imperative to save the lives of civilians trapped in the besieged city of El Fasher and other cities throughout Sudan; Sudanese everywhere are at acute risk from the dangers of hunger and disease.
Security situation around Zamzam camp (El Fasher)
As we have witnessed and the whole world is witnessing, the security situation is very, very bad around the state of North Darfur and the city of El Fasher. This is due to the growing violence of the RSF paramilitaries against civilians and defenseless displaced persons. Most have remained silent in the face of the daily scourges of destruction and death. Most of the civilian neighborhoods in El Fasher are without inhabitants because of the severity of the violence.
The majority of families, especially women and children, have been displaced from El Fasher because of deliberate bombings by the RSF targeting civilians with an aim of looting their property, homes, and agricultural crops. The RSF is seeking to acquire power by means of violent force, even as all competent authorities are completely unable to stop the violence.
Many have been killed or injurings during their flight from El Fasher. The death toll among young people, women, children, and the elderly has greatly increased. Yet while the attacks of the inhuman, racist Janjaweed militias continue, the world has remained silent and offered no effective action to resolve this crisis. The complete absence of security in the entire region of Northern Darfur, the stifling siege of the city of El Fasher, its IDP camps and its surrounding has made life terribly cheap.
On top of this, most of the roads to and from the city are completely closed. And this has forced the city’s merchants to take various dangerous paths to smuggle food, goods, and all basic necessities in order to save lives. All the main roads to El Fasher remained closed, this especially the road linking El Fasher, Mellit and Libya, which has been closed since the beginning of last April until now. This road was considered critical for feeding half of Darfur; but the terrorist militia that is the RSF deliberately closed it, despite being one of the largest roads through which humanitarian aid and critical goods come from neighboring countries such as Libya, Chad, Egypt and others. Currently in North Darfur state there is no movement from Kutum to El Fasher because of RSF actions, as they criss-cross the road constantly.
The road from Tina to El Fasher via Kornoye and Ambro locality to Dour about 20km north of Kutum is the only area considered relatively under the control of the SAF and its allies, the joint forces of armed struggle movements. But their movements are limited to their respective garrisons and environs of the mentioned towns.
Road from Mellit to El Fasher via Kouma
From Kabkabiya to El Fasher there is only one open road (and this is true of all the other small roads linking to El Fasher from the northwest). The road that connects El Fasher to El Daein, capital of Eastern Darfur (passing through the town of Kazan Gedeed) is the only road that remains open in this area. And even on this road, travellers must pay transit fees at several checkpoints controlled by local militias affiliated with RSF. The main road linking El Fasher to the capital of South Darfur, Nyala, which has been under the control of the Rapid Support Forces since October last year, is partially closed; only the Arab Rizeigat tribe and the other Arab tribes affiliated with the RSF are allowed to pass.
In short, all roads have been controlled by the RSF/terrorist Janjaweed militias. The severe humanitarian situation and continuous destabilizing insecurity in Darfur and around El Fasher only grows worse.
Humanitarian living conditions around North Darfur and El Fasher
The humanitarian situation is deteriorating desperately on a daily basis throughout North Darfur. The ongoing fighting has resulted in an unknown number of deaths and woundings of citizens, but the figure is many thousands, most of whom are women and children. This is in addition to the acute shortage of food supplies and the scarcity of other commodities because of the RSF blockade on a key national road, preventing the entry of commercial trucks, humanitarian aid, and all necessities of life.
This stifling siege and continuous fighting are the main drivers of the obscenely high food prices; and the absence of cash is also adding even more pressure to the existing crisis. Today, a pound of sugar has gone from costing 500 Sudanese pounds before the war on El Fasher to the present price of 3,500 Sudanese pounds—a sevenfold increase. A kilo of meat has jumped from 1,000 to 10,000 Sudanese pounds. There is also a significant scarcity of essential medicines and painkillers and prices have skyrocketed. These are the reasons the living situation for IDPs—in Zamzam camp, the city of El Fasher, and its surrounding areas—has reached the stage of real and severe famine, with the growing death of children due to malnutrition. If there is no urgent relief intervention in the coming days, even via airdrops, daily death due to malnutrition will probably triple.
Health situation in El Fasher and North Darfur
It is also worth noting that the health situation continues to deteriorate, directly linked to the security and living situation. The lack of medicines, scarcity of health professionals, increasing number of wounded as a result of the shooting and bombing of civilian neighborhoods, the deliberate disruption of health centers by the RSF through devastating bombing—all have made the health conditions extremely precarious. Small facilities and private clinics which used to help IDPs have closed and shelter centers are overstretched and rapidly running out of all reserves.
This deteriorating health situation is leading to high daily death rates, and many citizens suffering from injuries and wounds are struggling to cope; additionally, there is a rapid increase in the spread of diseases. As we mentioned in the previous report, most of the hospitals and health centers were completely destroyed in El Fasher, most destructively, the El Fasher Southern Hospital, the El Fasher Teaching Hospital, and the Saudi Hospital (the latter was partially destroyed but there is still in partial service, operated volunteers and doctors serving the displaced).
Food items distributed by Team Zamzam between July 15 and August 15
As usual, the Zamzam team inspected the humanitarian conditions inside Zamzam camp and the dispersed shelter centers with the aim of distributing food baskets to relieve pain and stress that many families are enduring. After evaluation carried out on most segments of the camp, a total 1123 vulnerable families were targeted for distribution which comprised sugar, flour, and red lentils.
[This brings to 2,000 families assisted over the past two months—ER]
Among the beneficiaries of the distribution:
120 widows
63 orphan children
12 families with physically disabled family members
13 families with paralyzed children
72 families with children suffering from acute malnutrition
Quantity of food distributed
25 large bags of sugar, each bag containing 50 kg
60 bags of flour, each containing 25 kg
44 bags of red lentils, each containing 25 kg
The distributions were distributed equally among each family: 2 kilos of flour; 1 kilo of sugar; and half a kilo of lentils.
Targeted shelter centers:
Al-Salam girls School 18: 377 families
Al-Zamzam Secondary Boys School: 181 families
Al-Basharia School Shelter Center: 152 families
Zamzam Shelter Center, Sector (A): 129 families
Zamzam Shelter Center, Sector (C): 283 families
Testimonies of beneficiaries
In the light of such difficult circumstances and people living on the verge of severe famine, many displaced people have benefited from the distribution of food supplies; among these displaced people are many vulnerable families, widowed women, the elderly, and people with special needs.
Also, many of them benefited from the awareness and guidance sessions that provided to them by the counselors of Team Zamzam and its volunteers for girls who have been subjected to sexual violence, abuse, and humiliation during the extreme violence of war.
Mrs Nour Al-Huda, 48 years old, is one of the displaced people originally displaced from the Hashaba area and she is now displaced again from Abuja camp to Zamzam camp. She is the mother of four children, two girls and two boys; her husband disappeared 12 years ago during a Janjaweed attack on their village.
Nour Al-Huda said:
“We were forced to deal with the stress caused us deliberately by the Janjaweed militia. The RSF militia terrorised us and killed many of our people. All the Janjaweed are doing is stealing, looting, threatening, displacing thousands, and raping most of the women and their daughters.”
Mrs. Nour Al-Huda has been displaced more than five times to different places; her life has been completely destroyed, and what money she had was stolen. She is deeply sad and stressed.
She said:
“We are now very afraid, even within Zamzam camp: the RSF and Janjaweed are threatening to enter the displaced shelter centers. But God will protect us.”
After receiving her food package, Nour Al-Huda screamed with happiness and joy and then ululated and said, “today you sisters of Team Zamzam have miraculously appeared like angels from nowhere to surprise us. Thank you for saving our lives, thank you for saving our children from hunger, thank you and god bless you and bless your families.”
For her part, Mrs. Nahid Ismail said:
“Today was the happiest today for my family and many other families who are suffering too much. This food aid you provided us will last us at least for one good week and finally we will recover for the week; today our meal has become complete with the grace of god.”
She continued, saying: “We need the immediate intervention of organizations, philanthropists, and all young people outside and inside the country. We have been struck by a wave of hunger, disease, and severe suffering in the displacement camps, especially children, women, the elderly, and people with special needs. Here conditions are very difficult and unstable.”
Also, one of the notables of Zamzam camp said:
“We call on the competent authorities responsible for the health field to intervene immediately to save the lives of the displaced and provide treatment and care for them. To deal with the fall season, there is frequent rainfall and the destruction of houses, shelter centers and hospitals, and the necessity of providing insecticides for flies and mosquitoes. We also suffer from a lack of rain protection tools, such as tarpaulins and others.”
For his part, the young activist Ali Hassan also said:
“We in the camps of Zamzam camp all need to provide security, safety and stability so that we can provide decent means of life and obtain basic, health and security services and break the siege of the Janjaweed militias on the shelter areas and other areas in the state so that we can reclaim our livelihoods, and again begin to collect firewood and straw. Because are besieged from all directions, we cannot walk any distance to leave the camp; the number of women experiencing violence in the camps, random threats, and kidnappings increase every day.”
A young man with a mobility disability said:
“We are more vulnerable to the dangers of daily life. We are exposed to all kinds of danger, such as assault rifles, gunshots, and humiliating insults by militias at any moment. Our livelihoods are poor because of the absence of security, the absence of work, and the absence of income from commercial enterprises. We also suffer too much from the lack of tarpaulins in the shelter centers. We demand that charitable associations, humanitarian organizations, philanthropists, the United Nations, and other organizations bear in mind our difficult situation and look at the condition of the displaced inside the shelter centers.”
Stories of women exposed to sexual and physical violence
On Juy 27, people of Zamzam were shocked again by another heinous rape committed by the RSF militia 14 kilometers east of Zamzam camp. Mrs (N.A) left the camp with her two daughters at exactly seven o’clock in the morning while they were heading to the farm near Wadi Zamzam. The young girls are (A.M.), who is 17 years old and (F.M.), who is 20 years old. The three victims are on their way to work on the farm to earn some money to sustain their living.
While they were on their way, eight men from the RSF appeared suddenly in front of them and attacked them immediately. The girls and their mother were severely beaten and then they gang-raped—the girls and their mother at the same time.
Unfortunately, it was late, around four in the afternoon, and the rain was pouring heavily; there was no one near them, not even a passerby to hear their screaming. Seven out of eight attackers used all kinds of violence and after raping them then they left the victims in terrible condition.
After the incident, the young girls were no longer able to walk, move, or get up from the ground due to scratches in their reproductive system and the force of pressure on their legs. The three victims decided to spend the entire night on the roadside hoping to be rescued by a passerby. They waited until the next morning when they were finally helped and rushed to the camp; all this was and reported to the police and the family.
Afterwards, the victims received treatment and care, but their psychological and physical condition is very bad and they need much more help and counseling. The mother has recovered, but the young girls are still traumatised and the counselors of team Zamzam are doing everything in their capacity to provide psychological support for the young girls.
Shelter centers that completely collapsed due to the floods
Al Salam Shelter Center 43
Al Salam girls School Shelter Center 44 and 45
Al Salam Shelter Center 56
The Shelter Center, Al-Zaim Al-Azhari School
Nour Al Iman Shelter Center
Kharifna Shelter Center
Al Imtiaz Secondary Shelter Center
Partially collapsed shelter centers
Al Salam Shelter Center 57
Al Salam Shelter Center 18
Zamzam boys Secondary school Shelter Center.
Al Salam girls School Shelter Center 8
Shelter Center, Al Nasfiya School
Zamzam girls Secondary School Shelter Center.
Shelter Center, Al Osul School of special needs Shelter Center.
Shelter Center, Arafat Secondary School for Boys
A Yaqeen Secondary Shelter Center
Abdullah Nafi’ Shelter Center
Kumra School Shelter Center
Al Areej Shelter Center
Al Salam 28, 29 Shelter Center
Recommendations and demands of the displaced:
We, like the other displaced in various shelter centers, have remained silent throughout this period of very harsh humanitarian conditions because of the vicious wars and ongoing clashes. But now we demand the following:
• We demand the lifting of the siege at the level of displaced persons camps, the shelter centers and besieged cities, in particular the city of El Fasher.
• We demand the exit of RSF and their Janjaweed militia from our homes, public centers and civil institutions.
• We demand the necessity of a ceasefire from all parties, with the intervention of relief organizations, all humanitarian organizations, the international community, and philanthropists to provide basic services to the displaced.
• We demand the provision of tarpaulins to protect against rain and cold from philanthropists, organizations, and entrepreneurial youth.
• We demand the provision of health services in primary health centers and the activation of medical personnel immediately.
• We demand the provision of food, drink, housing, health services, education, awareness and other means of protection.
• We demand the provision of aids for people with special needs and the disabled who have been displaced in shelter centers.
• We demand that all roads be opened for cargo trucks and international community organizations to enter the shelter centers without any hinders
• We demand the provision of security and safety for all displaced persons and civilians and the return of all property looted by the RSF militias.
• We demand the opening of job opportunities for the displaced and the provision of basic services to sustain human life.
• We demand that the ongoing random bombardment in and around the city of El Fasher and its camps be stopped.
• We call on the international community to hold these criminal militias accountable.
• We demand an active role by the United Nations, the US government, the UK government, and all friends of Darfur; the must not afford immunity to these criminal militias of RSF.
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Finally, we the members of Team Zamzam would like to inform all our generous supporters and donors that beginning in September—in addition to distribution of food supplies—we will set-up a cooking kitchen in the middle of Zamzam camp. This is precisely at the public square which has been renamed as “Eric’s Square” since last October when we were able to feed so many of the most impoverished families and the children suffering from acute malnutrition.