Amnesty International has accused the Sudanese paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) of committing crimes against humanity and ethnic cleansing during its campaign to capture El Fasher, the last stronghold of the Sudan armed forces in Darfur.
Systematic Attacks on Civilians
According to a report released on Wednesday, the RSF carried out widespread and systematic attacks against civilians, including murder, torture, rape, enslavement, and sexual slavery. These acts amount to crimes against humanity, the human rights organisation said. The RSF also deliberately targeted children during attacks in the city in North Darfur state.
In October, the paramilitary force captured El Fasher after an 18-month siege, a brutal takeover marked by widespread massacres that killed tens of thousands of people.
UN Findings of Genocide
In February, an independent UN fact-finding mission stated that the RSF’s seizure of El Fasher showed “hallmarks of genocide” against non-Arab communities.
For its report, Amnesty interviewed 247 people, including 208 survivors of the fighting in the city and surrounding areas. It also analysed documentary and video material and carried out satellite imagery analysis of North Darfur.
War Crimes and Ethnic Persecution
Amnesty concluded that the RSF committed war crimes in El Fasher and surrounding areas between mid-2024 and late 2025. The paramilitary force often targeted non-Arab civilians and repeatedly used derogatory and dehumanising language in attacks. The RSF committed the crime against humanity of persecution on the basis of ethnicity, Amnesty concluded.
Satellite imagery showed the destruction in El Fasher, and Amnesty said the RSF’s destruction of towns and villages between December 2024 and March 2025, including Abu Zerega, which is populated by non-Arab ethnic groups, was consistent with ethnic cleansing.
Impact on Children and Displacement
The abuses carried out by the RSF have orphaned countless children and displaced hundreds of thousands of others, exposing them to death and injury during attacks or while fleeing.
Agnès Callamard, the secretary general of Amnesty International, said: “The war in Sudan is a war on civilians. The world was warned of the horrors that civilians in El Fasher confronted as the RSF laid siege to the city. It is a stain on the conscience of humanity.”
Named Commanders
The report named three RSF commanders responsible for serious violations of international law: Maj Gen Gedo Hamdan Ahmed Mohamed, also known as “Abu Shok”; Lt Col Abbas Khater Bakhit; and commander Al-Fateh Abdullah Idris, also known as “Abu Lulu”.
Background of the Civil War
The Sudanese civil war began in April 2023 when a power struggle between the Sudan armed forces led by Gen Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and the RSF headed by Gen Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, commonly known as Hemedti, erupted into violence in the capital, Khartoum. The fighting has killed hundreds of thousands of people and displaced more.
Amnesty called for an immediate ceasefire and for the urgent deployment of an international force to protect civilians. Callamard said: “The international community must move beyond statements of concern and take concrete steps to protect civilians, breaking the cycle of impunity.”
