RSF killed at least 89 civilians in Sudan’s Darfur, U.N. says

August 22, 2025 (GENEVA) – The U.N. human rights office on Friday said Sudan’s Rapid Support Forces (RSF) killed at least 89 civilians in “brutal attacks” over a 10-day period in the besieged North Darfur city of El Fasher, with many victims apparently targeted for their ethnicity.

The spokesperson for the U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights, Jeremy Laurence, said the actual number of civilians killed in the city and the adjoining Abu Shouk camp was likely higher.

“This pattern of attacks on civilians and wilful killings, which are serious violations of international humanitarian law, deepens our concerns about ethnically motivated violence,” Laurence said in a statement.

The U.N. documented that at least 32 civilians were killed between Aug. 16 and Aug. 20, following a previous attack on Aug. 11 that killed at least 57.

The agency said it was particularly horrified that 16 of the recent killings appeared to be summary executions. Most of those victims were from the African Zaghawa tribe, while another man was reportedly killed after telling his attackers he belonged to the African Berti tribe.

The U.N. also received reports that at least 40 internally displaced men were abducted on Aug. 16 and their whereabouts remain unknown.

The attacks have worsened a critical humanitarian situation in El Fasher, which has been under siege for more than a year, with a growing risk of famine in the region.

Laurence said aid delivery has also come under fire, citing an Aug. 20 incident where aerial strikes in Mellit, North Darfur hit a U.N. convoy of 16 trucks carrying food.

“Humanitarian assistance and workers are protected explicitly under international humanitarian law and must not be targeted,” he said.

U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk called on all parties to the conflict to protect civilians, ensure safe passage for those wishing to leave conflict zones, and facilitate unimpeded humanitarian aid.