The paramilitary Rapid Support Forces burned and buried hundreds of civilians in mass graves in the Sudanese city of El-Fasher, according to local medics, in what was described as an attempt to conceal evidence of atrocities.
The Sudan Doctors Network said on Sunday that the RSF had collected bodies from streets and neighborhoods in a grim effort to hide its crimes.
Medics accuse RSF of atrocities and cover-up
In a strongly worded statement, the Sudan Doctors Network detailed the allegations. “The RSF has collected hundreds of bodies from the streets and the city’s neighborhoods and buried some in mass graves and burnt others in a desperate attempt to conceal evidence of their crimes against civilians,” the group said.
The medical group condemned these actions as a “full-fledged genocide” and a “violation of all international and religious norms.” It emphasized that the mutilation of corpses and denial of a dignified burial stripped the dead of their basic dignity.
A “systematic genocide” amid international silence
The statement framed the situation as a severe escalation, moving beyond a humanitarian crisis. “The situation in El-Fasher has gone beyond a humanitarian catastrophe to become a systematic genocide, targeting human life and dignity amid an appalling international silence that amounts to complicity,” it read.
The network called for immediate, concrete action from the global community, urging an independent international investigation into the atrocities committed against civilians in El-Fasher. “The RSF crimes cannot be erased by burying or burning,” the group asserted.
Context of the fall of El-Fasher
The RSF seized control of El-Fasher, the capital of North Darfur state, on 26 October. The capture of this key city was followed by reports from local and international organizations of widespread ethnic-based massacres.
United Nations experts have warned that the assault on El-Fasher and the surrounding region risks triggering a repeat of the genocide committed in the early 2000s.
A war with no end in sight
The violence in El-Fasher is a focal point of the wider conflict that has engulfed Sudan since 15 April 2023, pitting the national army against the powerful RSF paramilitary group.
Despite numerous regional and international attempts at mediation, the war continues with no end in sight.
The fighting has killed tens of thousands of people and created one of the world’s most severe displacement crises, forcing millions of Sudanese to flee their homes.
