Human Rights Watch calls for efforts to prevent further atrocities in Sudan

The Deputy Africa Director at Human Rights Watch, Letitia Bader, and Jean-Baptiste Gallopin, Senior Crisis and Conflict Advisor, said that interviews they conducted with dozens of refugees who fled from El Fasher to Chad confirmed that the world has failed civilians in Sudan, and that what happened during the fall of El Fasher was a foreseeable massacre.

They noted that fighters from the Rapid Support Forces repeatedly carried out mass killings against civilians and combatants attempting to flee at multiple points along and around the trench surrounding El Fasher.

The organization explained that nearly all those interviewed who tried to head toward the village of Qarni, northwest of El Fasher, described systematic attacks by the Rapid Support Forces. The forces reportedly fired on crowds from long distances, from multiple directions, and then at close range, resulting in the deaths of countless people trapped in the trench.

The organization added that the forces subjected women and girls to widespread sexual violence. Survivors reported being abducted on the road from El Fasher and raped, with many subjected to gang rape, sometimes in front of relatives and at other times in remote areas away from the road.

It also noted that the forces detained individuals, separated them into groups based on age and gender, and killed large numbers of men. Persons with disabilities were sometimes targeted specifically because of their disabilities.

The statement concluded by calling for action against the perpetrators, efforts to prevent further atrocities, and compensation for survivors.