Sudanese civil war: Multiple villages razed near El Fasher

Washington/Geneva: The Rapid Support Forces (RSF) and its affiliated militias have razed multiple villages west of El Fasher in Sudan, the United States claimed today citing “credible reports”. Washington called for an immediate cessation of attacks in El Fasher, and North Darfur in Sudan.

“An offensive against El Fasher city would subject civilians to extreme danger, including the hundreds of thousands of displaced persons who have taken refuge there,” the US stated.

The United States today called on all armed forces in Sudan to immediately cease attacks in El Fasher, North Darfur. “We are alarmed by indications of an imminent offensive by the Rapid Support Forces and its affiliated militias,” a US State Department spokesperson said in Washington.  

The US also condemned reported indiscriminate aerial bombardments in the region by the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and their continued limitations on life-saving humanitarian aid access.

“The leaders of the SAF and RSF and their affiliated militias face a choice – escalate the violence and perpetuate the suffering of their people while risking the disintegration of their country, or cease attacks, allow unhindered humanitarian access, and prepare in good faith for negotiations to end this war and restore power to the people of Sudan,” the spokesperson stated.

Earlier on April 15, 2024, the United Nations Human Rights Commissioner Volker Türk had warned, “Civilians have already suffered immensely and with reports over the weekend of an imminent attack on El-Fasher, North Darfur, there is an alarming risk of further violations and abuses against civilians amid a still worsening humanitarian crisis across the country. The fighting must end.”

Since the outbreak of hostilities on April 15, 2023, between the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), there has been an increase in ethnic violence in Sudan. Thousands of civilians have been killed, injured, forcibly disappeared, arbitrarily arrested and detained. Over eight million people have been displaced from their homes, more than two million of them to neighbouring countries. Nearly 18 million people face acute food insecurity, 14 million of them children and over 70 per cent of hospitals are no longer functional amid a rise in infectious diseases. Arrest warrants recently issued against leading civilian figures, including former Prime Minister Abdallah Hamdok, on charges, some of which carry the death penalty, also risk exacerbating the situation.

“This catastrophic situation must not be allowed to continue,” said the High Commissioner.

The UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD), on April 16, 2024, urged Sudan to address and prevent further escalation of ethnic violence, incitement to racial hatred and racist hate speech.

The Committee was shocked by reports of ethnically motivated attacks committed principally by the RSF and allied militia targeting members of the Masalit, Fur and Zaghawa communities, in particular killing of people fleeing the conflict zones, attacks on camps and sites for internally displaced people, forced displacement, looting, burning and destruction of villages and towns. These include attacks which took place in El Geneina, West Darfur, that were primarily against the Masalit community and resulted in the deaths of thousands of people, including Masalit leaders, lawyers and human rights defenders. There were also reports of rape of women and girls, some as young as 14 years old, and of racial slurs towards Masalit and other women and girls of African ethnicity.

The Committee was also alarmed at reports of arbitrary detentions, torture and extrajudicial killings allegedly perpetrated by the SAF and allied militia, targeting mainly members of Arab tribes from Darfur and Kordofan based on their perceived ethnic or tribal origin. The Committee also raised red flags on reportedly recruitment and use of children by the warring parties along ethnic lines, in particular in Darfur and Kordofan regions as well as in Khartoum and other northern states.