Sudanese women displaced from provincial capital of North Darfur over the weekend described harrowing conditions as they fled from bombing and gunfire.

As part of their assault on el-Fasher, Rapid Support Forces fighters went from house to house, beating and shooting at people, including women and children, witnesses told The Associated Press.

Many people managed to flee el-Fasher and arrived exhausted and dehydrated in the nearby town of Tawila, around 60 kilometers (37 miles) west of the city, which already hosts over 650,000 displaced people.

Families are forced to live in makeshift tents in an open area with none of their belongings after they were looted on their journey to safety.

"I came here barefoot, even my shoes were taken", said Aisha Ismael who fled the city on Saturday.

The U.N. migration agency estimates that over 26,000 people managed to flee the city.

The International Committee of the Red Cross said in a statement on Tuesday that more than 4,200 people had reached camps in the town of Tawila, in North Darfur, in the last two days.

Two years of fighting for control of Sudan has killed over 40,000 people — a figure rights groups consider a significant undercount — and has created the world’s worst humanitarian crisis with over 14 million displaced.