Women Fleeing Sudan’s Al-Fashir Report Rape, Killings and Child Disappearances

In Sudan’s North Darfur, new accounts from women fleeing the city of Al-Fashir reveal horrifying scenes of violence and abuse after its capture by the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces.

According to UN Women, survivors describe killings, systematic rape, and the disappearance of children, atrocities that unfolded as the RSF cemented its control over the Darfur region in its brutal war with the Sudanese army.

Anna Mutavati, UN Women’s Regional Director for East and Southern Africa, says sexual violence is now being used deliberately and systematically as a weapon of war. “Women’s bodies have become a crime scene in Sudan,” she warned. “There are no safe spaces left.”

The situation is equally dire for those still trapped. Around 11 million women and girls are facing acute food insecurity. Many risk sexual violence even while searching for wild leaves and berries to eat.

Famine has now been declared in Al-Fashir and the southern city of Kadugli. The UN Human Rights Chief says he fears ongoing executions, rape, and ethnically targeted attacks.

Since late October, at least 82,000 people have fled Al-Fashir and surrounding areas but aid agencies estimate as many as 200,000 civilians remain trapped inside the besieged city.

The UN is urging immediate international action to stop the violence and prevent an even greater humanitarian catastrophe.