The grip of Sudan’s war on the town of El Fasher in the Darfur region tightens as the military standoff between the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) and Sudan’s armed forces rages on.

The first RSF offensives were repelled by the military, resulting in a days-long battle for El Fasher.

Some 18 million people across the country are facing hunger and five million are on the brink of famine. The World Food Program reported that 1,200 metric tons of food supplies for some 116,000 people are being transported to the Darfur region to ease the emergency.

Town after town has fallen into the hands of the RSF. The city of El Fasher is considered the last bastion of the Sudanese military in western Sudan.

The RSF’s military advances are accompanied by ethnic cleansing against Sudan’s non-Arab population, Human Rights Watch reports.