A man who escaped the last functioning hospital in the Sudanese city of el-Fasher before a reported massacre by paramilitary troops says he has lost all hope and happiness. I have lost my colleagues, Abdu-Rabbu Ahmed, a laboratory technician at the Saudi Maternity Hospital, has told the BBC. I have lost the people whose faces I used to see smiling... It feels as if you lost a big part of your body or your soul.
He has been speaking to us from a displaced persons camp in Tawila some 70km (43 miles) to the west of el-Fasher, the regional hub which was taken over by paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) in the last week of October after an 18-month siege. The RSF has been fighting the Sudanese army since April 2023, when a power struggle between their leaders erupted into a civil war.
The alleged killings of at least 460 patients and their companions at the Saudi Hospital were one of the most shocking among widespread accounts of atrocities - some of them filmed by RSF fighters and posted to social media. The World Health Organization (WHO) expressed its shock over the reported shootings and the abductions of six health workers.
The RSF has dismissed the accusations as disinformation, declaring that all of el-Fasher's hospitals had been abandoned. Medical staff had shared limited food as the RSF blockade tightened, often working without meals. When the RSF commenced their last assault, most fled. Ahmed, who remained through regular attacks, described scenes of chaos and loss.
The shelling started around six in the morning. All civilians and soldiers headed out towards the southern side. There was a state of terror, and as we walked, drones were bombing us. And heavy artillery too - I saw many people die on the spot, there was no-one who could save them.
Many medical workers were detained or executed after fleeing, creating a climate of despair for those remaining in el-Fasher. Ahmed's fears for those left behind are palpable: They may be killed; they may be used as human shields against the [Sudanese air force] airstrikes.
The ongoing conflict has seen many lives crushed under the violence, furrowing deep emotional scars in survivors like Ahmed, who stated, I do not have any hope of returning to el-Fasher. After everything that happened and everything I saw, even if there was a small hope, I remember what happened in front of me.\
He has been speaking to us from a displaced persons camp in Tawila some 70km (43 miles) to the west of el-Fasher, the regional hub which was taken over by paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) in the last week of October after an 18-month siege. The RSF has been fighting the Sudanese army since April 2023, when a power struggle between their leaders erupted into a civil war.
The alleged killings of at least 460 patients and their companions at the Saudi Hospital were one of the most shocking among widespread accounts of atrocities - some of them filmed by RSF fighters and posted to social media. The World Health Organization (WHO) expressed its shock over the reported shootings and the abductions of six health workers.
The RSF has dismissed the accusations as disinformation, declaring that all of el-Fasher's hospitals had been abandoned. Medical staff had shared limited food as the RSF blockade tightened, often working without meals. When the RSF commenced their last assault, most fled. Ahmed, who remained through regular attacks, described scenes of chaos and loss.
The shelling started around six in the morning. All civilians and soldiers headed out towards the southern side. There was a state of terror, and as we walked, drones were bombing us. And heavy artillery too - I saw many people die on the spot, there was no-one who could save them.
Many medical workers were detained or executed after fleeing, creating a climate of despair for those remaining in el-Fasher. Ahmed's fears for those left behind are palpable: They may be killed; they may be used as human shields against the [Sudanese air force] airstrikes.
The ongoing conflict has seen many lives crushed under the violence, furrowing deep emotional scars in survivors like Ahmed, who stated, I do not have any hope of returning to el-Fasher. After everything that happened and everything I saw, even if there was a small hope, I remember what happened in front of me.\
