Hundreds killed, women abducted in attack on Darfur’s Zamzam camp, SIHA says
April 16, 2025 (NAIROBI) – Reports emerging from North Darfur detail a brutal attack by the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) on the Zamzam displacement camp on April 12, resulting in hundreds of civilian deaths and injuries, widespread sexual violence, and the abduction of women and girls, according to a statement released Tuesday by the Strategic Initiative for Women in the Horn of Africa (SIHA Network).
Zamzam camp, one of Darfur’s largest and oldest, housing between 350,000 and 500,000 displaced people, has become the latest site of alleged mass atrocities by the RSF, SIHA reported.
Verified accounts cited by SIHA confirm that as of April 13, 330 civilians were killed in the attack, including 56 women and girls. At least 200 women sustained injuries, with many requiring urgent medical attention in El Fasher. Additionally, eight children suffered life-threatening injuries within Zamzam camp, while 20 children were reported dead following attacks on both Zamzam and the nearby Abshouk camp.
The SIHA Network also mourned the loss of two of its female volunteers who ran community kitchens within Zamzam, stating their deaths were part of the broader destruction of civilian-run services in the camp.
Disturbingly, the rights group confirmed reports of sexual violence perpetrated by RSF fighters during the assault. Eight women who managed to reach El Fasher reported being raped by RSF soldiers inside the camp on April 13. Eyewitnesses also reported seeing RSF fighters abduct at least 25 women and girls using military vehicles.
The ability for civilians to escape the violence remains severely limited. SIHA stated that only around 2,000 people have successfully fled to the relative safety of El Fasher, with others heading to Tawila town. However, hundreds, including many women, children, and elderly individuals, are reportedly missing or trapped inside Zamzam camp “under grave and life-threatening conditions — without protection, food, water, or medical care.”
Highlighting over two decades of conflict and atrocities in Darfur, SIHA Network issued urgent calls to the international community. It urged the United Nations and the African Union to establish an immediate hybrid peacekeeping mission mandated to protect civilians. It also called on the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) and other humanitarian organisations to coordinate the creation of safe corridors for evacuation and aid delivery for those trapped in Zamzam and other conflict areas.
SIHA stressed that accountability for perpetrators of war crimes, crimes against humanity, and genocide is essential for achieving peace and stability in Sudan and restoring dignity to the people of Darfur.