Brian McDonald
Port Sudan, Sudan — A series of attacks by Sudanese paramilitary forces in the western Darfur region raises the possibility of “genocide” against non-Arab ethnic communities, Human Rights Watch said Thursday. The paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), along with allied militias, have been widely accused of ethnic cleansing, crimes against humanity and war crimes in their countries. war with the regular army of Sudanwhich began in April 2023.
The war killed tens of thousands of people, including up to 15,000 in El-Geneina town in West Darfur, according to United Nations experts. The area is the focus of HRW’s 186-page report “‘The Massalit Will Not Come Home’: Ethnic Cleansing and Crimes Against Humanity in El-Geneina, West Darfur, Sudan.”
It describes “a campaign of ethnic cleansing against the Massalit ethnic group and other non-Arab populations.”
From late April to early November last year, the RSF and allied militias “conducted a systematic campaign to remove, including through murder, residents of the Massalit ethnic group,” according to HRW.
Zohra Bensemra/REUTERS
The violence, which included atrocities such as mass torture, rape and looting, reached its peak in mid-June – when thousands of people were killed in just a few days – and rose again in November.
Local human rights lawyers said they detected a pattern in which fighters targeted “prominent members of the Massalit community”, including doctors, human rights defenders, local leaders and government officials.
HRW added that the attackers “methodically destroyed critical civilian infrastructure,” particularly in communities made up of displaced Massalit.
Satellite images showed that since June, predominantly Massalit neighborhoods in El-Geneina have been “systematically dismantled, many with bulldozers, preventing fleeing civilians from returning to their homes,” HRW reported.
HRW said the attacks constitute “ethnic cleansing” as they appear to be aimed at “at least getting them to permanently leave the region.”
The context of the murders “further raises the possibility that the RSF and its allies intend to completely or partially destroy Massalit, at least in West Darfur, which would indicate that genocide was and/or is being committed there “, he added.
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HRW called for an investigation into genocidal intent, directed sanctions at those responsible, and urged the UN to “expand the existing arms embargo on Darfur to cover all of Sudan.”
The International Criminal Court, which is currently investigating ethnic-based killings in Darfur, says it has “reason to believe” that both paramilitaries and the army are committing “Rome Statute crimes”, which include war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide.
In December, the United States said rival Sudanese forces committed war crimes in the brutal conflict, accusing the RSF of ethnic cleansing and crimes against humanity.
More than half a million Sudanese have fled violence in Darfur for Chad, according to the latest UN figures. At the end of October, 75% of people crossing the border were from El-Geneina, HRW said.
All eyes are currently focused on the state capital of El-Fasher in North Darfur, some 400 kilometers east of El-Geneina – the only state capital not under RSF control.
The United States has warned of a disaster of “epic proportions” if the RSF goes ahead with an expected attack, as residents fear the same fate as El-Geneina will befall them.
“As the UN Security Council and governments wake up to the impending disaster at El-Fasher, the large-scale atrocities committed at El-Geneina must be seen as a reminder of the atrocities that could occur in the absence of concerted action ”, he stated. HRW Executive Director, Tirana Hassan.
