Sudanese women who fled the city of El-Fasher say they endured brutal mass sexual assaults, killings, and forced displacement after the country’s paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) captured the city on October 26 — ending an 18-month siege that had already cut off food, medicine, and communications.
One survivor, identified only as “Amira” for her safety, says she now wakes up trembling each day at a makeshift shelter in Tawila, northwest of El-Fasher. She told campaign group Avaaz during a recent webinar that women and girls were assaulted publicly as civilians tried to flee.
“The rapes were in full view of everyone. Nobody could do anything,” she said.
Human rights groups and medical workers say the violence is widespread and coordinated.
Doctors Without Borders (MSF) said its teams in Tawila have treated more than 300 sexual violence survivors linked to RSF attacks — including assaults connected to a previous attack on Zamzam camp, which displaced more than 380,000 people earlier this year.
Amnesty International has documented a pattern of sexual violence by both RSF fighters and Sudanese army soldiers since the conflict erupted in April 2023 — but stressed that RSF actions in Darfur reflect “decades of impunity” for crimes committed there.
Sudan’s state minister for social welfare, Sulimah Ishaq, told AFP that on the day El-Fasher fell, 300 women were killed — some after being sexually assaulted.
The General Coordination for Displaced People and Refugees in Darfur says it recorded at least 150 sexual violence cases between the fall of the city and November 1.
Last week, UN officials in Geneva reported that at least 25 women were gang-raped at gunpoint after RSF fighters stormed a displacement shelter near El-Fasher University.
Another survivor, Mohamed, said RSF fighters subjected women to invasive searches, beatings and humiliation — even tearing apart sanitary pads while looking for valuables.
Amira said in some cases RSF fighters demanded money for safe passage. Those unable to pay were detained, assaulted, or had their underage daughters taken away.
“I saw girls being taken from their parents because their families could not pay,” she said.
She added that her own 12-year-old son witnessed men being slaughtered.
Humanitarian agencies warn of a deepening crisis
The UN estimates more than 65,000 people have fled El-Fasher since its fall, and more than 5,000 new arrivals are now cramped into Tawila, where over 650,000 displaced people were already sheltering. Many have constructed makeshift tents in the desert, struggling to find food, water, and medicine.
Humanitarian groups say urgent international intervention is required.
“The situation needs immediate assistance,” said spokesman Adam Rojal. “People need food, water, shelter, medical support — and psychological care.”
Source:Africa Publicity
