What we know about el-Fasherpublished at 14:15 GMT
Mohamed Mohamed Othman
BBC News Arabic – Omdurman, Central Sudan
El-Fasher is the capital of northern Darfur, a region as large as France. It’s located over 800km (497 miles) west of Khartoum and about 195 km from Nyala, capital of South Darfur State.
The city became an important commercial hub, located at the centre of Darfur states, North Kordofan, Khartoum and the Northern state.
The city serves as the main entry point for aid convoys from Port Sudan before distribution across Darfur.
El-Fasher is home to diverse tribal and ethnic groups, mainly Zaghawa, Fur, and Masalit, many of whom live in displacement camps. Arab-origin tribes are fewer and mostly in South Darfur, controlled by the Rapid Support Forces (RSF).
It has been under siege by the RSF for over a year since fighting erupted between these forces and the army, with violent battles claiming hundreds of lives.
El-Fasher hosts many displacement camps. Some were established over two decades ago after Darfur’s civil war during former President Omar al-Bashir’s era, while new camps were set up after the current war, housing displaced people from other Darfur states taken over by the RSF.
In 2008, the UN-AU mission in Darfur (UNAMID) chose el-Fasher as its main base, boosting its status and urban development.
