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Over 36,000 people have escaped Sudan's Kordofan area east of Darfur beginning Saturday, according to the UN's migration organization.

The strategic central area connecting the country's Darfur areas and the capital region has during recent weeks become the latest battleground in the 24-month civil conflict between the Sudanese military forces and the paramilitary forces.

Massive Exodus Figures

An calculated 36,825 people fled five areas in North Kordofan state between 26 October and 31 October, per data from the International Organization for Migration.

The civilians, mainly traveling by foot, traveled to Tawila, a town to the west of El Fasher that is currently sheltering over 652,000 displaced people.

Increased Forces Deployment

Local inhabitants of North Kordofan on Monday reported a substantial rise in both RSF and army presence across urban and rural areas throughout the state.

Both military groups are competing for control of El Obeid, the North Kordofan provincial capital and a critical supply and command hub that joins Darfur to Khartoum.

"Today, all our forces have converged on the Bara front here," commented an RSF member in a recently distributed video message.

Area Citizens Detail Protection Issues

A resident of Um Smeima, located west of El Obeid, reported that the number of RSF vehicles had risen substantially since the group's seizure of El Fasher.

"We discontinued traveling to our farms, fearing confrontations," the individual commented.

Another inhabitant, who asked to remain unnamed for security reasons, also indicated that "there has been a significant rise in army vehicles and weapons west and south of El Obeid" over the previous fortnight.

World Alarms and Requests

A senior UN official raised the alarm last week about "widespread abuses" and "ethnic-based retaliations" by RSF in Bara.

The representative alerted to patterns comparable to patterns in Darfur, where RSF militants have been alleged to commit mass killings, sexual violence and abductions against certain racial groups.

The church leader on Sunday called for an quick cessation of hostilities and the establishment of relief routes in Sudan, declaring that attacks on civilians and obstacles to humanitarian aid "are producing unacceptable suffering."

Sudan's ambassador to Egypt on Sunday alleged RSF of carrying out war crimes in El Fasher and declared that the Sudanese government would not discuss with the armed faction.

The representative further urged the international community to classify the group as a terrorist organisation.