Sudanese doctors reveals hundreds of civilians killed, 57 women raped in Sudan’s Barra, Babnousa

November 20, 2025 (PORT SUDAN) – Hundreds of civilians have been killed and 57 women raped in Sudan’s Bara and Babnousa towns, a doctor from the Sudan Doctors Syndicate said on Thursday, in what she described as retaliatory attacks by the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces.

The RSF launched the attacks after regaining control of Bara on October 26, said Adiba Ibrahim Al-Sayed, an internal medicine and epidemiology specialist with the syndicate’s Omdurman branch.

“The number of civilian victims in the Bara area has reached 420 killed, while in Babnousa it currently stands at 147 killed,” Al-Sayed told Sudan Tribune. Most victims were women and children, she said.

Reuters could not independently verify the figures.

The Sudanese Army has been conducting military operations in North Kordofan since the beginning of this week, seizing the towns of Kazgail and Umm Dam Hag before advancing to Bara and Umm Sayala, then withdrawing under heavy fighting.

The RSF has besieged Babnousa from all directions since January, launching three waves of attacks, the most recent beginning about 10 days ago, Al-Sayed said.

Fifty-seven women raped by RSF elements in Bara and Babnousa were transferred to Al-Obeid Hospital in North Kordofan, where Médecins Sans Frontières provided treatment, she said.

Four births resulting from rape occurred at Al-Naw Hospital in Khartoum State, while 48 abortions were performed between late 2023 and early 2024, including 12 at Al-Naw Hospital and 36 at Shendi Hospital in River Nile State, according to Al-Sayed.

The RSF has been accused of using sexual violence as a weapon of war to control and terrorize local communities. The group has not responded to the allegations.