Sudan's paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) have allegedly committed numerous crimes against humanity during their siege of the city of el-Fasher in Darfur, according to a report by UN investigators.
The report accuses the RSF of crimes including murder, torture, enslavement, rape, sexual violence, and persecution based on ethnicity, gender, and politics. It also mentions broader war crimes committed by both the RSF and the regular army, with both parties denying any wrongdoing.
Chair of the Fact-Finding Mission, Mohamed Chande Othman, stated that both groups have targeted civilians through various inhumane acts such as arbitrary detention and torture. He emphasized that these are not accidental occurrences but deliberate strategies constituting war crimes.
The report highlights the RSF's use of starvation as a weapon of war, particularly in the besieged Zamzam refugee camp where a famine had previously been declared. Following the RSF's attack in April, tens of thousands of people were forced to flee their homes again.
El-Fasher is currently the last major foothold of the Sudanese army in Darfur, enduring ongoing siege conditions that have led to extensive humanitarian crises. The US has accused the RSF of committing genocide against Darfur’s non-Arab population, leading to sanctions on army chief Gen Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, blamed for using food deprivation as a strategy in warfare.
The conflict has seen over 13 million people displaced, and the UN report urges the international community to take immediate action by enforcing an arms embargo and holding those responsible for these atrocities accountable through an independent judicial process.
Mr. Othman concluded, Civilians are paying the highest price in this war, as recent satellite imagery underscores the severe humanitarian crisis facing the region.
