Survivors Say RSF Rounded Up Hundreds Near El‑Fasher; Reports of Beatings, Ransoms and Ethnic Targeting

Survivors say RSF rounded up hundreds near El‑Fasher amid reports of abuse

A young man from a town outside western Sudan's El‑Fasher, who gave his name as Hussein, told investigators he was among roughly 200 men and boys detained by Rapid Support Forces (RSF) fighters in Garni, about 25 kilometres northwest of the city. He and others say they were held for days, beaten and insulted.

'We were rounded up and taken,' Hussein said. 'They hit us with sticks and called us slaves.' He spoke on condition of using only his first name for fear of reprisals.

The RSF, which has been fighting Sudan's army since April 2023, seized El‑Fasher one week ago after an 18‑month siege during which residents endured bombardment and acute food shortages. Since the takeover, reports have emerged alleging executions, sexual violence, looting, attacks on aid workers and abductions in and around the city, where communications remain largely cut.

Hussein said detainees were locked inside a school building, given only one meal a day and subjected to frequent beatings and verbal abuse. 'After four days they released some of us, but every day they brought in new people,' he said.

Scope of displacement and missing people

The United Nations estimates more than 65,000 people have fled El‑Fasher, including about 5,000 to nearby Tawila, though tens of thousands are believed to remain trapped. Before the final assault, the city had an estimated population of about 260,000.

Michel Olivier Lacharité, head of emergencies at Doctors Without Borders (MSF), warned that arrival figures 'do not add up' and raised alarm about accounts of large‑scale abuses. Satellite imagery analysed by Yale University's Humanitarian Research Lab detected activity in RSF‑controlled Garni consistent with displaced people gathering, and identified 'multiple objects that measure approximately 2 metres x 3 metres' at a separate facility that may have been used to hold people.

Ransom, disappearances and eyewitness accounts

Among the detained was Abbas al‑Sadek, a lecturer at El‑Fasher University. A relative who asked not to be named said Sadek recorded a short video pleading with a colleague to transfer $900 to a bank account. In footage seen by reporters, Sadek said the money 'is worth my life' and that he had only minutes. He was later released and is reportedly travelling to Tawila; many others remain unaccounted for.

Zahra, a mother of five now sheltering in Tawila, said RSF fighters took her two sons, aged 16 and 20. 'They finally let the younger one go, but I don't know if Mohammed is alive or dead,' she said.

On the road to Garni, a father named Mohamed described encountering dead and wounded people left behind because families could not carry them. 'The RSF robbed us and stopped the young men travelling with us. We don't know what happened to them,' he said.

Another survivor, Adam, said RSF fighters detained him after finding the blood of his two sons, aged 17 and 21, on his clothing. 'They killed my sons in front of my eyes,' he said. Adam was released after hours of interrogation, but many others remain in captivity.

Reports of ethnic targeting and abuse

Witnesses told MSF detainees were separated by gender, age and ethnic identity, and many were apparently held for ransom. One witness described 'horrific scenes' in which prisoners were crushed under vehicles. MSF coordinator Sylvain Penicaud said many people are traumatised and desperately searching for missing relatives: 'Everyone is looking for someone.'

Penicaud added that many who fled said they believed they were targeted because of the colour of their skin. 'The most terrifying part was hearing how people were hunted while running for their lives; attacked simply for being black,' he said.

Both the RSF and Sudan's regular army have faced accusations of war crimes during the conflict. The United States has previously determined that the RSF committed genocide in Darfur. Communications in the area remain disrupted, complicating verification and humanitarian access.

Sources: AFP reporting, Doctors Without Borders (MSF), United Nations, Yale University Humanitarian Research Lab.