The United Nations’ top official has warned Sudan’s civil war is spiraling out of control after the Rapid Support Forces paramilitary group seized control of the city of El Fasher in Sudan’s North Darfur region. On Tuesday, U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres warned that hundreds of thousands of civilians remained trapped by fighting, with large numbers dying of malnutrition, disease and violence. Guterres cited reports of war crimes and human rights abuses, including summary executions and sexual assaults. Survivors who fled El Fasher reported mass killings following the RSF’s advance.

Abdallah Hassaballah: “Once you leave the gates, the bodies start. The bodies continue all the way to Garri. Some were killed by thirst, some by exhaustion, some by their injuries, the bleeding. Some were injured by the rockets in El Fasher. They hurt more than gunshots, the shrapnel. They get into your body. They cause your legs to swell, stop your blood flow. It exhausts you. It impacts you within two or three hours.”