El Gezira RSF attacks ‘akin to violence witnessed in Darfur last year’, says UN Sudan resident

Clementine Nkweta-Salami, the United Nations Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator in Sudan, expressed deep concern over escalating armed violence perpetrated by the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) in El Gezira, which has killed at least 120 people.

El Gezira is reeling from violent attacks carried out by the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) that left more than 120 civilians dead, and around 200 others injured in El Sariha village, El Kamlin, on Friday. The RSF is accused of massacring civilians, detaining 150 people, and isolating the region by cutting off communication channels and confiscating Starlink devices, effectively trapping residents.

Reports indicate the RSF imposed a blockade on more than 30 villages, closing main roads to prevent civilians from fleeing while using them as “human shields” against anticipated airstrikes by the Sudan Armed Forces (SAF), local sources say.

The RSF reportedly launched these attacks in response to the defection of their local senior commander Abu Agla Keikel to the army along with some of his troops.

“Residents attempting to escape are hindered by artillery shelling and road closures, with communication cut off to suppress information from reaching the outside world.” The RSF has also broadcast videos “showing abuse and humiliation of captured civilians, fuelling anger among the population and condemnation from political groups and civil society”, the source added.

A distressing video obtained by Sudan Tribune and said to be taken in El Gezira on Friday shows a man in RSF uniform dragging an old man by his beard and humiliating him.

The number of civilian casualties remains unclear. Thousands of families have reportedly fled to various areas within El Gezira, with others displaced to El Gedaref and Kassala.

In a statement yesterday, the Sudanese Doctors Syndicate warned that civilians “face a double threat: gunfire, and starvation or disease” due to lack of aid. It further called for the RSF to be designated a terrorist organisation and urged for international action against nations supporting the paramilitary group.

Clementine Nkweta-Salami

Earlier today, Nkweta-Salami condemned the large-scale attack launched by the RSF across eastern El Gezira between October 20 and 25 in a statement.

“I am shocked and deeply appalled that human rights violations of the kind witnessed in Darfur last year – such as rape, targeted attacks, sexual violence, and mass killings – are being repeated in El Gezira. These are atrocious crimes,” she said. “Women, children, and the most vulnerable are bearing the brunt of a conflict that has already taken far too many lives.”

“Residents of several villages […] have reportedly been subjected to physical assaults, humiliation, and threats, forcing dozens of civilians to flee their homes in search of safety. Those who remain face serious threats.

“Attacking civilians, civilian objects, and public infrastructure is prohibited by international humanitarian law. It is unacceptable and must stop immediately. Civilians must be protected wherever they are,” she urged.