Washington Post reports mass kidnappings, killings by Sudan’s RSF in El Fasher

Sudan’s Rapid Support Forces (RSF) paramilitary carried out mass kidnappings, extortion and executions of civilians after capturing the western city of El Fasher in late October, The Washington Post reported, citing survivors, relatives of hostages and human rights groups.

According to the newspaper’s investigation, the RSF routinely killed and abducted civilians attempting to flee. When the Sudanese army withdrew from its final positions and the city fell on Oct. 27, RSF fighters seized civilians en masse, including women and children, holding them for large ransoms and executing those unable to pay.

Survivors told The Washington Post that detainees were subjected to torture, starvation, and humiliation, and were forced to contact relatives to demand cash payments under threat of death. Several said that executions were carried out immediately after ransom demands were refused or unmet.

Nathaniel Raymond, the director of the Humanitarian Research Lab at Yale University’s School of Public Health, told The Washington Post that his team believes tens of thousands of people may have been killed by RSF forces. “You have a brigade‑sized force cleaning up human remains, with no return to normal civilian activity,” Raymond told the Post.

The Yale Humanitarian Research Lab has been documenting the atrocities occurring in El Fasher since the city fell to the RSF. According to HRL’s analysis, satellite imagery captured immediately after the RSF takeover showed clear evidence of mass killings across the city. The lab identified bodies in civilian neighborhoods, around medical facilities, and along escape routes on the outskirts of El Fasher, demonstrating that the violence was widespread rather than limited to active combat areas. HRL concluded that these patterns were consistent with a rapid and systematic campaign of killings carried out following the RSF’s capture of the city.

One medical worker told the Post that RSF fighters executed about 30 civilians from a group captured while fleeing El Fasher. He said he was spared after identifying himself as a doctor and was later released only after friends paid a ransom of about 15 million Sudanese pounds, roughly $25,000. Another survivor described attacks on civilians fleeing westward from the city, including artillery fire, and armored vehicles running over people lying on the ground. He said his sister was among those killed.

Several survivors said detainees were questioned about their ethnic background and that people from African tribes, including the Zaghawa, were executed, while others were detained for ransom. Former detainees said prisoners were later transferred to overcrowded detention facilities, including Daqris prison in Nyala, where captives were held in severe conditions.

Sudan has been engulfed in a devastating civil war since April 2023, when violent clashes erupted between the RSF and the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF). The conflict has triggered what the United Nations describes as one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises. Since then, the humanitarian situation has deteriorated at an alarming pace, with widespread reports of mass killings, summary executions, and ethnically motivated atrocities across multiple regions.

Following the RSF’s capture of El Fasher, the group has intensified its military campaign, attempting to expand its territorial control and extend its influence. At the same time, the SAF has also faced serious accusations, including allegations of human rights violations and the use of chemical agents in certain areas. These claims have further deepened concerns about the conduct of both warring parties.

The prospect of a ceasefire remains bleak. The latest proposal, backed by the United States and aimed at halting hostilities, has faltered after the SAF rejected its terms. With diplomatic efforts repeatedly stalling and violence continuing to escalate, the path toward a negotiated settlement appears increasingly uncertain.