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Survivors recount horrors after Sudan's el-Fasher falls to RSF paramilitaries
Displaced civilians fleeing the captured Darfur city of el-Fasher describe mass killings, sexual violence, and extortion by the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) during and after its 18-month siege, as survivors arrive at overcrowded desert camps in northern Sudan.
Chaotic escape as city falls
Abdulqadir Abdullah Ali, 62, a diabetic with severe nerve damage, ignored his pain as gunfire and explosions erupted when RSF fighters seized el-Fasher in October. "People lost control-families scattered in every direction," he recalled. The paramilitary group's capture of Sudan's last army-held Darfur stronghold marked a turning point in the civil war that began in April 2023.
Ali, now in a tent camp near al-Dabbah-770 km northeast of el-Fasher-described RSF fighters shooting civilians, crushing survivors under vehicles, and looting belongings. "They emptied their guns on the elderly," he said. Others, like local official Mohammed Abbaker Adam, disguised themselves-Adam grew a white beard to appear older-only to witness executions and unburied corpses lining escape routes.
Systematic violence and separation of families
Survivors report RSF fighters systematically targeting men of fighting age while raping women. Adam corroborated accounts of sexual violence: "You'd hear women scream, 'Help me,' after being dragged away." A 19-year-old woman, whose father was killed in combat, described checkpoints where fighters abducted girls from fleeing groups. Her grandmother died en route from exhaustion; her 15-year-old brother endured hours of interrogation under threat of execution.
Abdullah Adam Mohamed, a perfume seller, was forcibly separated from his three young daughters-aged two, four, and six-after their mother died in shelling months earlier. "I feared I'd never find them again," he said. Others, like Ali, saw mass executions: "They shot all the men. The women were spared."
Extortion and forced displacement
Escape required bribes at RSF checkpoints. "They stripped us of money, phones, even our clothes," Adam said. "At each stop, they forced us to call relatives to transfer funds before letting us pass." Many arrived in al-Dabbah with nothing. The UN estimates over half of el-Fasher's 260,000 pre-siege residents remain unaccounted for-detained, killed, or stranded.
"They have a strategy: film themselves handing out water, then beat us once cameras leave."
Mohammed Abbaker Adam, displaced local official
RSF denies abuses, blames "media campaign"
The RSF rejected allegations of systematic atrocities, calling them politically motivated. "Any proven wrongdoing by our members will be punished," said adviser Dr. Ibrahim Mukhayer. The group shared videos of aid deliveries and reopened clinics, but survivors dismissed these as propaganda. "Their kindness ends when the cameras stop," Adam said.
US intervention amid genocide allegations
The fall of el-Fasher-where the U.S. previously determined the RSF committed genocide-has prompted President Donald Trump to pledge deeper involvement in ceasefire talks. Yet for survivors like Ali, now begging for shelter, diplomatic efforts feel distant. "We just need a tent to rest," he said.
Broader conflict context
Both the RSF and Sudan's army stand accused of war crimes, including civilian shelling and ethnic targeting. The war has displaced millions, with Darfur bearing the brunt of atrocities. International pressure grows as evidence mounts, but accountability remains elusive.
