UN Human Rights Commission: Rapid Support Forces Continue Atrocities in El-Fasher
Geneva – Sudanhorizon
The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) reported on Friday that killings and atrocities are still ongoing in El-Fasher, with hundreds confirmed killed by the Rapid Support Forces (RSF).
In a press briefing, OHCHR spokesperson Ravina Shamdasani stressed the need for an independent investigation into the atrocities committed in the city and for accountability for those responsible. She confirmed that civilian killings in both El-Fasher and Abu Shouk Camp are still ongoing.
A press statement from the Commission said that more details continue to emerge regarding the atrocities committed during and after the fall of El-Fasher to the RSF, following the group’s large-scale assault on the city on 23 October. The statement cited “horrific reports of summary executions, mass killings, rape, attacks on humanitarian workers, looting, abductions, and forced displacement.”
The OHCHR said its office received harrowing testimonies from those who fled the city in terror, enduring a three to four-day trek to Tawila, about 70 km away. The Commission also reviewed disturbing video footage and images showing grave violations of international humanitarian and human rights law.
It added that communication lines remain cut and the situation on the ground is chaotic, making direct information gathering extremely difficult. The Commission estimated that the number of civilians and incapacitated persons killed during and after the RSF assault on the city and its exit routes “may reach the hundreds.”
The statement further reported that the OHCHR office received shocking accounts of patients and wounded individuals executed inside the Saudi Maternity Hospital and in other buildings in Al-Daraja Al-Oula and Airport neighborhoods, which had been converted into temporary medical centers.
It also cited alarming reports of sexual violence, with at least 25 women subjected to gang rape after RSF forces stormed a displacement shelter near El-Fasher University. Witnesses said RSF fighters selected women and girls at gunpoint and raped them, forcing the remaining 100 displaced families to flee under gunfire and intimidation.
The OHCHR also documented the killings of aid workers and local volunteers supporting vulnerable communities, confirming that two paramedics were killed between 27 and 29 October, and that at least four incidents of assaults on humanitarian personnel were recorded. The RSF also detained three doctors in El-Fasher.
The statement noted grave violations in Bara, North Kordofan, where the RSF allegedly executed five Red Crescent volunteers. It estimated that hundreds of civilians were killed around 26 October, some during clashes and others in summary executions for allegedly supporting the Sudanese Armed Forces.
“These latest reports of serious violations,” the OHCHR said, “may amount to multiple crimes under international law.” The Commission called for independent, swift, transparent, and comprehensive investigations, emphasizing the need for justice, truth, and reparations for victims and their families.
UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk reiterated his call for states with influence over the warring parties to act urgently to end the violence, halt the flow of weapons fueling the conflict, and ensure the effective protection of civilians.
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