Satellite images show possible mass killings, body disposal by RSF in Sudan’s El-Fasher – Yale report

Satellite analysis shows Sudan’s paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) may be disposing of bodies in mass graves in areas of El-Fasher under their control after the city fell late last month, according to a report by Yale University researchers.

The Yale School of Public Health’s Humanitarian Research Lab (HRL) said imagery from Nov. 1-3 revealed freshly dug pits and dark objects “consistent with human bodies” near the former Children’s Hospital, which the RSF has turned into a detention site.

The researchers said the activity appeared to show the RSF “conducting clean-up” following alleged mass killings. The number of bodies could not be determined because remains are often layered in such burials, the report said.

At least two other areas show likely mass graves, including at a mosque in the Daraja Oula neighborhood, where white bundles were visible near disturbed earth between Oct. 30 and Nov. 1. The site lies close to Al-Saudi Hospital, where hundreds of patients and companions were allegedly killed. HRL said satellite images from Oct. 31 also showed a cluster of objects north of an RSF berm, previously linked by online investigators to execution footage, that had been removed by Nov. 4, raising concerns about evidence destruction.

Since Oct. 26, when the RSF seized El-Fasher, the last major Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) foothold in North Darfur, at least 34 groupings of objects likely to be bodies have been identified from space, though the report said this was “widely believed to be an underestimate”.

The report also flagged the presence of large flatbed trucks in several parts of the city, which could be used to transport detainees, bodies or looted goods. Local media have reported thousands of residents taken hostage and transferred to Nyala, along with widespread plunder.

The follows an earlier report where the HRL reported mass killings in El-Fasher, within 48 hours of the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) seizing control. Satellite imagery and corroborated reports indicate systematic executions at multiple sites: the former Children’s Hospital, where imagery indicated the presence and subsequent deaths of large groups; the Saudi Hospital, where white objects consistent with human remains and signs of violence were observed; and along the berm encircling the city, where clusters of body-sized objects and RSF vehicles were documented. Eyewitness accounts and open-source reports support claims of RSF targeting civilians, including separating and executing men attempting to flee.

Since the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) captured El Fasher, reports and evidence have emerged of mass atrocities committed by RSF forces. Eyewitnesses and survivors have described harrowing acts of violence. A joint investigation by Sky News, Sudan War Monitor, and Lighthouse reveals that after El Fasher fell to the RSF, thousands of fleeing civilians and soldiers were intercepted and subjected to brutal treatment, some executed.

UN security council have recently called on the RSF to protect civilians, and ensure humanitarian access. However, the situation remains grim. The Integrated Food Security Phase Classification has confirmed that famine has taken hold in El Fasher and Kadugli, with projections indicating it will persist until at least January 2026.