UN Mission Concludes RSF Siege of El Fasher in Sudan Exhibits Genocide Characteristics
A United Nations-mandated fact-finding mission has determined that the siege and capture of the Sudanese city of El Fasher by the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces group last October displayed "the hallmarks of genocide". The report, released recently, details the harrowing 18-month occupation of the capital of North Darfur, revealing a coordinated effort by the RSF and allied militias to inflict conditions aimed at the physical destruction of the Zaghawa and Fur ethnic communities.
Systematic Atrocities and Ethnic Targeting
Mohamed Chande Othman, the mission's chair, emphasized that "the scale, coordination, and public endorsement of the operation by senior RSF leadership demonstrate that the crimes committed in and around El Fasher were not random excesses of war." Investigators concluded that after seizing El Fasher, the RSF imposed "three days of absolute horror", resulting in thousands of people, particularly from the Zaghawa ethnic group, being killed, raped, or disappeared. The report calls for a thorough investigation of the perpetrators to hold them accountable.
Widespread Sexual Violence and Mass Killings
The mission documented extensive sexual violence against girls and women aged seven to 70, including pregnant individuals. Survivors recounted attacks occurring in front of family members, often involving severe physical abuse. In one tragic incident, a 12-year-old girl was raped by three RSF fighters as her mother watched, shortly after her father was killed while trying to protect her; the girl later succumbed to her injuries. Such assaults frequently took place at locations like El Saudi hospital and El Fasher University, where mass killings had also occurred. Witnesses described public gang rapes of at least 19 women in rooms littered with corpses, including those of the victims' husbands.
Broader Conflict and Humanitarian Crisis
This report emerges amid a nearly three-year war in Sudan that has forced 11 million people to flee their homes and killed tens of thousands, creating what the UN labels one of the world's worst humanitarian crises. The conflict began in April 2023 when the RSF, backed by the United Arab Emirates—a position the Gulf state denies despite evidence—turned against the army after a fallout between its commander, Muhammad Hamdan Dagalo, and army chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan. The RSF originated from the Janjaweed militias, infamous for atrocities in Darfur during the early 2000s that killed 300,000 people and displaced 2.7 million.
International Response and Ongoing Violence
The UN report's release coincided with drone strikes in Sudan's Kordofan region, which left dozens dead, including at least 15 children in a displacement camp in West Kordofan, according to Unicef. Another strike on a market in North Kordofan killed 28 people, with blame directed at the Sudanese army and RSF, respectively. In response, the United States announced sanctions on three RSF commanders for their roles in the El Fasher operation, citing "ethnic killings, torture, starvation, and sexual violence". The mission, which interviewed 320 witnesses and verified 25 videos, urges decisive international action to end the violence and ensure accountability as the conflict shifts from Darfur to Kordofan.
