Sudanese refugees who fled the violence in Sudan’s Darfur region and newly arrived ride their donkeys looking for space to temporarily settle, near the border between Sudan and Chad in Goungour, Chad. File
| Photo Credit: Reuters

“A series of attacks by Sudanese paramilitary forces in the western region of Darfur raise the possibility of “genocide” against non-Arab ethnic communities,” Human Rights Watch (HRW) said on May 9.

The paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), along with allied militias, have been widely accused of ethnic cleansing, crimes against humanity and war crimes in their war with the regular Army, which began in April 2023.

“The war has killed tens of thousands, including up to 15,000 in the West Darfur town of El-Geneina,” according to UN experts.

The area is the focus of the 186-page HRW report “‘The Massalit Will Not Come Home’: Ethnic Cleansing and Crimes Against Humanity in El-Geneina, West Darfur, Sudan.” It describes “an ethnic cleansing campaign against the ethnic Massalit and other non-Arab populations”.

From late April until early November of last year, the RSF and allied militias “conducted a systematic campaign to remove, including by killing, ethnic Massalit residents”, according to HRW.

The violence, which included atrocities such as mass torture, rape and looting, peaked in mid-June — when thousands were killed within days — and surged again in November.

Local human rights lawyers said they had tracked a pattern where fighters targeted “prominent members of the Massalit community”, including doctors, human rights defenders, local leaders and government officials.

HRW added that the attackers “methodically destroyed critical civilian infrastructure”, primarily in communities consisting of displaced Massalit.

Satellite imagery showed that since June, predominantly Massalit neighbourhoods in El-Geneina have been “systematically dismantled, many with bulldozers, preventing civilians who fled from returning to their homes”, HRW reported.

HRW said the attacks constitute “ethnic cleansing” as they appeared to be aimed at “at least having them permanently leave the region”.

The context of the killings further “raises the possibility that the RSF and their allies have the intent to destroy in whole or in part the Massalit in at least West Darfur, which would indicate that genocide has been and/or is being committed there”, it added.

‘Large-scale atrocities’

HRW called for an investigation into genocidal intent, targeted sanctions on those responsible and urged the United Nations to “widen the existing arms embargo on Darfur to cover all of Sudan”.

The International Criminal Court, currently investigating ethnic-based killings in Darfur, says it has “grounds to believe” that both the Paramilitaries and the Army are committing “Rome Statute crimes”, which include war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide.

And in December, the United States said that Sudan’s rival forces have both committed war crimes in their brutal conflict, accusing the RSF of ethnic cleansing and crimes against humanity.

“More than half a million Sudanese have fled the violence from Darfur into Chad, according to the latest UN figures. By late October, 75% of those crossing the border were from El-Geneina,” HRW said.

Around 400 km (250 miles) east of El-Geneina, all eyes are currently on El-Fasher in North Darfur, the only state capital not under RSF control. The United States has warned of a disaster of “epic proportions” if the RSF proceeds with an expected attack, as residents fear the same fate of El-Geneina will befall them.

“As the UN Security Council and governments wake up to the looming disaster in El-Fasher, the large-scale atrocities committed in El-Geneina should be seen as a reminder of the atrocities that could come in the absence of concerted action,” said HRW executive director Tirana Hassan.

A file photo of Sudanese family who fled the conflict in Murnei in Sudan’s Darfur region. File
| Photo Credit: Reuters

Britain has circulated a draft United Nations (UN) resolution calling for an immediate cessation of hostilities in conflict-wracked Sudan ahead of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, which begins soon.

The draft, obtained on Wednesday (March 6) by The Associated Press, expresses “grave concern over the spreading violence and the catastrophic and deteriorating humanitarian situation, including crisis levels of acute food insecurity, particularly in Darfur.” With Ramadan expected to begin around Sunday, depending on the sighting of the new moon, the council is expected to vote quickly on the resolution, likely on Friday.

Sudan plunged into chaos last April, when long-simmering tensions between its military led by Gen. Abdel Fattah Burhan and the Paramilitary Rapid Support Forces commanded by Mohammed Hamdan Dagalo broke out into street battles in the capital, Khartoum.

Fighting spread to other parts of the country, especially urban areas, but in Sudan’s western Darfur region it took on a different form, with brutal attacks by the Arab-dominated Rapid Support Forces on ethnic African civilians. Thousands of people have been killed.

Two decades ago, Darfur became synonymous with genocide and war crimes, particularly by the notorious Janjaweed Arab militias against populations that identify as Central or East African.

The International Criminal Court’s prosecutor Karim Khan said in late January there are grounds to believe both sides in the current conflict are committing possible war crimes, crimes against humanity or genocide in Darfur.

Meanwhile, France’s UN Ambassador Nicolas de Riviere said, “It would be a disgrace if we have a Ramadan truce in Sudan and no Ramadan truce in Gaza. We need both,” he said.

The United States vetoed a resolution calling for an immediate humanitarian cease-fire in Gaza on February 20 that was supported by almost the entire 15-member Security Council.

The U.S. is negotiating on its own proposed Gaza resolution, with the latest draft calling for a cease-fire “of roughly six weeks in Gaza together with the release of all hostages” as soon as Israel and Hamas agree. The draft makes no mention of Ramadan.

The latest draft on a Sudan cease-fire was circulated on the same day the head of the UN food agency warned that the Sudan conflict “risks triggering the world’s largest hunger crisis” as global attention is focussed on the Israel-Hamas war.

Cindy McCain, head of the World Food Programme (WFP), said the conflict in Sudan has shattered the lives of millions and called for the warring parties to stop fighting and allow humanitarian agencies to provide life-saving assistance.

“According to that UN agency, 18 million people across Sudan are facing acute hunger, with the most desperate trapped behind the front lines. They include five million who face starvation,” it said.

The proposed UN resolution calls on all parties to remove obstructions and allow “full, rapid, safe and unhindered humanitarian access” including across Sudan’s borders and across conflict lines.

The draft also urges strengthened coordination of several regional and international efforts “to facilitate an end to the conflict and to restore a lasting inclusive civilian-led democratic transition.”

UN experts said in a report obtained by AP on March 1 that fighters for the Rapid Support Forces and their allied militias carried out widespread ethnic killings and rapes while taking control of much of Darfur that may amount to war crimes and crimes against humanity.

The report to the Security Council painted a horrifying picture of the brutality of the Arab-dominated RSF against Africans in Darfur. It also detailed how the force succeeded in gaining control of four out of Darfur’s five states, including through complex financial networks that involve dozens of companies.