The humanitarian crisis in Sudan has deepened further as Zamzam, the country's largest camp for internally displaced people, was devastated by a brutal attack carried out by the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF). Home to more than 700,000 residents, Zamzam had offered a fragile refuge for those fleeing two decades of conflict in the Darfur region and, more recently, a nationwide civil war that erupted two years ago.

The RSF, currently engaged in a fierce battle with the Sudanese army for control of the nearby city of el-Fasher, launched a ground and aerial assault on the camp. While the group has denied committing atrocities, it confirmed its takeover of the area. According to North Darfur Health Minister Ibrahim Khater, the camp is now "completely destroyed" and entirely deserted.

Among the displaced is 28-year-old Fathiya Mohammed, who had been living in the camp for three months. Following the attack, she embarked on a harrowing four-day journey to the town of Tawila, walking barefoot while carrying her children and a bundle of possessions. She lost contact with her husband during the chaos and has not seen him since. Along the way, she was robbed and faced hunger, thirst, and exhaustion.

Medical charity Doctors Without Borders (MSF) reports that tens of thousands of people like Ms Mohammed have fled to Tawila, overwhelming already fragile services. MSF’s hospital in the town received over 20,000 patients within two days. Many arrived injured, including a seven-month-old baby with bullet wounds who could no longer cry.

Saadiya Adam, another resident of Zamzam, also escaped the violence with her two young children. She recounted how her home and livestock were burned in the assault. “Everything I owned was burned. I have nothing left,” she said.

The trauma experienced by survivors is severe. Patients at Tawila hospital spoke of narrowly surviving attacks by RSF forces. One, Issa Abdullah, said that three RSF vehicles opened fire on his group, injuring him and others. Another survivor, Hussein Khamis, was shot in the leg and made a painful journey to find medical help, only to discover that the hospital he reached had been abandoned.

MSF reported treating more than 170 people with gunshot and blast injuries, 40 percent of whom were women and girls. Many of the wounded and vulnerable, they say, were left behind in the camp due to their inability to flee.

Zamzam was originally established in 2004 to house people displaced by ethnic violence in Darfur. Its fall marks a strategic gain for the RSF, which has maintained control over most of western Sudan, including large parts of Darfur, despite losing Sudan’s capital, Khartoum, last month. The RSF has now announced intentions to form a parallel government in the regions it controls, sparking fears of a potential split in the country.

For now, those who managed to escape are left to process their grief and the uncertainty of their future. From the safety of Tawila, Fathiya Mohammed expressed the sentiment of many: “We want the war to stop. Peace is the most important thing.”