RSF Accused of Systematic Mass Killings and Evidence Concealment in El-Fasher, Sudan
RSF Accused of Systematic Mass Killings and Evidence Concealment in El-Fasher, Sudan
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Satellite imagery suggests tens of thousands have been killed in North Darfur city by RSF forces in what has been described as genocidal crimes against humanity.
A new report by Yale University’s Humanitarian Research Lab (HRL), as cited by Arab News, alleges that Sudan’s paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) carried out systematic mass killings and concealed evidence in the Darfur city of El-Fasher. The findings highlight the scale of atrocities following the RSF’s violent takeover of the city in October 2025.
Using satellite imagery, HRL identified 150 clusters of objects consistent with human remains, including dozens that corresponded with execution-style killings and attacks on civilians fleeing the city. Within a month, nearly 60 of these clusters disappeared, and eight earth disturbances were recorded near the sites of mass killings, which HRL said were inconsistent with standard civilian burial practices.
The report concluded that large-scale, systematic mass killings and body disposal occurred, with death tolls in the tens of thousands. The RSF’s takeover of El-Fasher, the last army holdout in North Darfur, has been accompanied by reports of summary executions, mass detention, and sexual violence, prompting international condemnation.
Aid groups and the UN have repeatedly called for safe access to El-Fasher, where communications remain cut and tens of thousands of civilians are trapped, many detained by RSF forces.
Sudan’s conflict, ongoing since April 2023, has claimed an estimated 150,000 lives and displaced millions, creating the world’s largest hunger and displacement crises. Fighting continues between the Sudanese army, led by de facto leader General Abdel Fattah Al-Burhan, and the RSF, commanded by his former deputy, Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo. Efforts to negotiate a ceasefire and end the war have repeatedly stalled, leaving civilians at extreme risk.
