El Fasher

History

El Fasher's origins date back to the late 18th century, when Abdul Rahman el-Rashid, Sultan of Darfur, moved his itinerant court (fashir) to a site called Rahad Tendelti while campaigning in the region of northern Darfur as it was a vital area for a settlement and grazing; eventually, the site was renamed to Al-Fashir. A town developed around the sultan's palace grounds.

Al Fashir University was created in 1990 by decree of President Omar al-Bashir and officially opened in February 1991 in premises west of El Fasher Airport and south of the Al Fashir Secondary School.{{cite web |access-date=15 September 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111020201144/http://www.fashir.edu.sd/ |archive-date=20 October 2011 |url-status=dead

During the 2010 El Fasher protests nine people were killed by authorities.

A series of sieges began in the city in April 2023 when the ongoing civil war in Sudan broke out. El Fasher was besieged by the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) from April 2024 to November 2025, when the RSF captured the city. The United Nations has warned that the civilian population of the city faced starvation and a humanitarian crisis, and has been in constant danger since the Rapid Support Forces indiscriminately bombarded public areas such as the city's central marketplace. Widespread killings and rape were reported after the city was taken by the RSF on 27 October 2025.

Geography

Climate

El Fasher has a hot arid climate (Köppen BWh) with three distinct seasons. There is a bone-dry and relatively "cool" season from October to February when temperatures are merely hot by afternoon and cool in the mornings, which gives way to a sweltering and equally arid "hot season" from March to May with high temperatures around 38 C and morning lows of 21 C. The Sahelian monsoon arrives in June and lasts until September, creating a short wet season that produces virtually all the year's rainfall of around 210 mm, accompanied by much higher humidity than during the remainder of the year.

| Jan record high C = 39.5 | Feb record high C = 41.0 | Mar record high C = 42.2 | Apr record high C = 43.0 | May record high C = 46.3 | Jun record high C = 44.2 | Jul record high C = 41.7 | Aug record high C = 43.5 | Sep record high C = 41.5 | Oct record high C = 40.0 | Nov record high C = 38.4 | Dec record high C = 36.7 | year record high C = 46.3 |Jan record low C = 0.7 |Feb record low C = 1.4 |Mar record low C = 6.5 |Apr record low C = 8.2 |May record low C = 12.8 |Jun record low C = 15.7 |Jul record low C = 15.6 |Aug record low C = 13.5 |Sep record low C = 15.0 |Oct record low C = 7.1 |Nov record low C = 5.6 |Dec record low C = 2.0 |year record low C = 0.7 |access-date = 21 January 2024}}{{cite web | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20220225054631/ftp://ftp.atdd.noaa.gov/pub/GCOS/WMO-Normals/RA-I/SU/62760.TXT | archive-date = 25 February 2022 | url-status = dead | access-date = 17 January 2016}}

Economy

The nearby Abu Shouk and Al Salam internally displaced persons camps had an influx of humanitarian aid from the United Nations as a result of the Darfur crisis, and the city experienced a significant economic and population boom. Rents and retail sales increased, including the selling of bottled water and the opening of a pizza parlour to cater to the demand from western aid workers. The number of petrol stations has tripled in three years as a result of the increase in the number of cars in the city. Employment opportunities also increased as the United Nations offered jobs to citizens. Economics analyst Adam Ahmed stated that the "people [of El Fasher] are beginning to think in a more business-minded way" to make the most of their situation.

Demographics

El Fasher had 264,734 residents , an increase from 2001, when the population was estimated to be 178,500. UN Habitat reported a population of over 500,000 for El Fasher in 2009, attributing the increase to refugees and economic migrants. In 2025, prior to the fall of the city, its population was estimated at 252,000 people.

Notable residents

• Siham Hassan, Sudanese politician and activist, killed during the RSF capture of the city in 2025.

Notes

References

References

1. "Sudan Cities by Population 2025".
2. (2025-11-05). "Al-Fāshir {{!}} Darfur Conflict, Humanitarian Crisis & Refugees {{!}} Britannica".
3. [https://www.britannica.com/place/Al-Fashir "Al-Fashir" (description)], ''[[Encyclopædia Britannica]]'', 2007
4. Crummey, Donald. (2005). "Land, literacy and the state in Sudanic Africa". Red Sea Press.
5. de Waal, Alex. (2005). "Famine That Kills: Darfur". Oxford University Press.
6. Khamis, Mohammed Zakaria. "Sudan’s el-Fasher has symbolism that hasn’t died".
7. (3 May 2010). "Bloody day in Darfur's El-Fasher after demonstrators march to governor residence".
8. (11 May 2010). "Death toll reaches nine for El Fasher protest".
9. (1 May 2023). "Medics in Sudan warn of crisis as health system near collapse". The Guardian.
10. (13 August 2025). "'Only hunger and bombs' for besieged civilians in Sudan's el Fasher | UN News".
11. (28 October 2025). "Sudan conflict: El-Fasher's fall to RSF paramilitary force raises fear of mass killings". www.bbc.com.
12. (4 November 2025). "Thousands targeted in 'killing fields' around Sudanese city in paramilitary group's hands". Sky News.
13. 978-0-14-303873-3
14. [http://www.unsudanig.org/library/mapcatalogue/darfur/data/camps/Map%201300%20SU-DAR-CAMP-55_A1_01Feb09_North_Darfur_AbuShouk_AlSalam_Camps_V2.pdf "Northern Darfur: Abu Shouk and Al Salam IDP Camps"] {{Webarchive. link. (23 July 2011 map, United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), Date Created: 1 February 2009)
15. Sanders, Edmund. [http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fg-aidtown30apr30,0,4922479.story?page=1 A Darfur capital is a humanitarian boomtown], ''Los Angeles Times'', 30 April 2008.
16. "Profile of El Fasher Town and Abu Shouk IDP Camp". [[UN Habitat]].
17. (28 October 2025). "وسائل إعلام سودانية: اغتيال النائبة سهام حسن أصغر برلمانية فى تاريخ السودان داخل الفاشر". Youm7.