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Newly emerging testimonies from some of the first eyewitnesses to flee El Fasher after its fall describe widespread summary executions, sexual violence, kidnappings, and numerous other atrocities that followed the Rapid Support Forces’ (RSF) takeover of the North Darfur capital on 26 October.
In a report released Tuesday, Amnesty International detailed accounts from survivors who said RSF fighters executed scores of unarmed men, raped women and girls, and carried out beatings and hostage-taking as they seized control of the city. Interviewees described bodies left strewn across streets and exit routes.
Amnesty International interviewed 28 survivors who escaped to Tawila and Tina after the RSF surrounded and then entered El Fasher. Some interviews were conducted in person in Chad, others by phone. Amnesty’s Secretary General, Agnès Callamard, warned that the evidence points to war crimes and possibly other crimes under international law, adding that the international community must demand accountability. She further stated that the United Arab Emirates’ support for the RSF has enabled these abuses, urging the UN Security Council to pressure the UAE to withdraw support and to strengthen the Sudan Fact-Finding Mission.
Survivors’ accounts include the killing of civilians who attempted to flee. Ahmed*, 21, recounted how RSF fighters executed his brother and three other men after accusing them of being combatants; he survived while caring for two orphaned children. Others, including 19-year-old Daoud* and 34-year-old Khalil*, described being ambushed, shot at, and witnessing friends or fellow escapees massacred.
Several detainees reported ransom demands. Badr*, 26, described RSF fighters executing elderly injured men and even donkeys before abducting survivors for ransom. He witnessed an RSF soldier execute a hostage on video to coerce payment.
Women and girls described severe sexual violence. Ibtisam* reported being raped by RSF fighters; her 14-year-old daughter was also assaulted and later died from trauma and illness during their escape. Another survivor, Khaltoum*, said RSF fighters separated women, marched them to Zamzam camp, and raped at least ten women during what they claimed was a “search.”
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Amnesty International is urging the UN, regional bodies, and powerful states—including the UAE, Saudi Arabia, the EU, AU, UK, US, Russia, and China—to exert strong diplomatic pressure on the RSF and to halt arms transfers fueling the conflict. Callamard emphasized that the testimonies reveal the international community’s failure to protect civilians and enforce accountability.
* Names have been anonymised for privacy