Key facts
- Three senior commanders of Sudan's Rapid Support Forces (RSF) are accused of war crimes by Amnesty International.
- The accusations relate to the RSF's siege and capture of el-Fasher in North Darfur in October 2025.
- Amnesty International's report details alleged crimes against humanity, including murder, torture, rape, sexual slavery, and ethnic cleansing.
- The report analyzed video evidence, survivor testimonies, and satellite imagery.
- Amnesty International Secretary General Agnès Callamard called for an immediate ceasefire and a UN protection force.
Amnesty International has accused three commanders of Sudan's Rapid Support Forces (RSF) of committing war crimes and crimes against humanity during the October 2025 siege and capture of el-Fasher, the last stronghold of the Sudan armed forces in the Darfur region. The human rights organization's report, released on Wednesday, details alleged atrocities including murder, torture, rape, sexual slavery, and enslavement, carried out as part of a widespread and systematic attack against civilians.
Amnesty International Secretary General Agnès Callamard stated that the RSF's actions amounted to crimes against humanity and ethnic cleansing, citing the destruction of towns and villages populated by non-Arab ethnic groups. The organization analyzed nine videos purportedly showing RSF commanders executing civilians, torturing detainees, and ordering torture. The report also noted the deliberate targeting of children during attacks.
Callamard urged the international community to move beyond statements of concern and take concrete steps to protect civilians, calling for an immediate ceasefire and the urgent deployment of a United Nations protection force. She also emphasized strengthening accountability mechanisms, including support for the International Criminal Court and UN/African Union fact-finding missions.
The RSF has not yet commented on the Amnesty report. Amnesty International stated that it had shared the report with RSF leader Gen. Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo last month but had not received a response.
The Sudanese civil war began in April 2023 between the army led by Gen Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and the RSF headed by Gen Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, commonly known as Hemedti. The conflict has killed hundreds of thousands of people, displaced millions, pushed parts of the country into famine, and left over 30 million people in need of humanitarian assistance.