KHARTOUM — A video circulating on social media shows fighters from Sudan’s Rapid Support Forces torturing a woman in Nyala, the capital of South Darfur. The footage, which sparked widespread condemnation, depicts the woman tied to a tree by RSF members, prompting renewed calls for accountability over abuses against civilians.
The incident comes as RSF maintains control over Nyala, which it previously declared the seat of a self-styled “ Government” led by commander Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, known as Hemedti, as part of its western stronghold.
At the same time, the United Nations Independent International Fact-Finding Mission on Sudan warned the country is witnessing what it described as a “war of atrocities,” marked by grave violations amounting to war crimes and crimes against humanity. The warning was issued in a report titled “War of Atrocities,” presented to the U.N. Human Rights Council’s 60th session in Geneva.
Mohamed Chande Othman, chair of the mission, told the council that Sudanese civilians have become direct targets of killings, forced displacement and starvation. He said the Sudanese people “require not only compassion, but protection and justice.” Documented violations include extrajudicial killings, rape, slavery, sexual violence, looting and ethnically targeted persecution.
Sexual violence documented
The report identified sexual violence as one of the defining features of the war, citing cases of individual and gang rape, sexual slavery and forced marriage carried out by RSF fighters against women and girls as young as 12, particularly from non-Arab communities. It also cited evidence of abuses in Sudanese army detention facilities, indicating a broader pattern of sexual violence by both parties.
Humanitarian collapse
Othman said the war has destroyed vital infrastructure, with repeated strikes on markets, near-collapse of the health system, and targeted killings of medical and humanitarian workers. The report warned that Sudan is now facing “one of the worst emergency hunger crises in modern history” due to the ongoing conflict and aid blockages.
Both sides were sharply criticized. The Sudanese army was faulted for failing to protect civilians, while RSF was accused of pursuing a “deliberate strategy of starving the population and denying them medicine and aid,” which the report said could constitute genocide under international law.
International action urged
The mission called for urgent and comprehensive international action to end violations in Sudan, stressing that impunity poses a major threat to stability in the country and the wider region. It urged an immediate cease-fire, unimpeded humanitarian access, an end to sexual violence, an international arms embargo on warring parties and the halting of material and military support to them.
The report also recommended strengthening cooperation with the International Criminal Court to ensure accountability, alongside targeted sanctions against individuals responsible for atrocities, whether military or political leaders.
Source: Social media, Al-Quds Al-Arabi
