Sudan’s RSF committing war crimes in Darfur, says Amnesty

In the Darfur town of El-Fasher, Sudan’s paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) fighters are allegedly committing war crimes, according to a new report from Amnesty International.

The RSF announced on Tuesday that it would immediately declare a three-month humanitarian truce in response to “international efforts” led by US President Donald Trump, just hours after the release of the report.

In Khartoum and other parts of Sudan in April 2023, a power struggle between the military and the RSF sparked open fighting in the capital.

Amnesty claimed to have gathered 28 survivors’ testimony to account for atrocities in El-Fasher, including the brutal execution of unarmed men and the rape of girls and women, in its most recent report.

According to Amnesty International’s Agnes Callamard, “this persistent, widespread violence against civilians constitutes war crimes and may also constitute other crimes against humanity.”

“Everyone accountable for their actions must be held accountable.”

Since April 2023, General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan’s regular forces have been fighting with the RSF, led by his former right-hand man and ally Mohamed Daglo.

El-Fasher, the last significant city in Darfur’s vast western region that had remained outside their control, was taken by the RSF at the end of October.

El-Fasher has been transformed into a “crime scene,” according to Tom Fletcher, the head of UN aid, last week, and demands that those who commit these crimes “face justice.”

One survivor from El-Fasher who claimed she and her 14-year-old daughter were raped as they fled the city is cited in Tuesday’s Amnesty report.

The woman told the rights group that her daughter passed away in a clinic in Tawila, where she had been a refugee family.

In late October, a survivor who had fled El-Fasher reported seeing shots fired by RSF forces while attempting to flee.

“The RSF was abusing people like flies,” they claimed. A massacre occurred. I have witnessed no armed soldiers being killed.

As both parties attempt to secure military gains before talks are held, mediation has so far failed to put an end to the fighting.

The Quad group of mediators’ proposal for a US truce was referred to as the “worst yet” and unacceptable by Burhan on Sunday. The United States, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, and the United Arab Emirates make up the Quad group. Burhan claimed that the UAE’s presence in the Quad meant that the proposals could not be seen as impartial because of it.