37 rapes reported in Sudan’s Rufaa amid RSF rampage

October 26, 2024 (RUFAA) – At least 37 cases of rape have been reported in and around the town of Rufaa in Sudan’s Al Jazirah state over the past five days, a local conference said on Saturday, amid a surge in violence following a regional commander’s defection from the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) to the army.

The Al Jazirah Conference, a civil society group, said the victims included three medical personnel at Rufaa Hospital and 34 women and girls from Rufaa and surrounding villages.

The RSF intensified operations in eastern Al Jazirah state last week after commander Abu Aqla Kikl switched allegiance to the army. The RSF has been accused of carrying out a retaliatory campaign marked by widespread human rights abuses.

“We have documented 37 cases of rape,” Al-Mubarak Mahmoud, secretary-general of the Al Jazirah Conference, told Sudan Tribune. “The RSF forces swept through these areas for five days.”

Mahmoud also reported the abduction of a girl in the Tambul area. Her family is searching for her in nearby villages.

The conference said it had filed complaints with the Attorney General in September regarding the abuses, which include rape, kidnapping, arbitrary arrest, and forced displacement.

On Friday, the RSF attacked Al-Sariha village in northern Al Jazirah state, part of a wider offensive across the east and north of the state. The attacks have resulted in widespread destruction, killings, looting, and forced displacement.