Reports emerging from Sudan’s Darfur region detail a new wave of ethnically targeted killings allegedly carried out by the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), adding to a long and brutal record of atrocities that international bodies have labeled as war crimes, crimes against humanity, and genocide. Citing survivor testimonies, the Sudan Doctors’ Network stated over 200 civilians, including women and children, were deliberately killed in attacks on the areas of Ambro and Abu Qamra in North Darfur and Sirba in West Darfur. These latest allegations arrive as the United Nations warns the conflict is entering a "deadlier phase" marked by indiscriminate violence and a severe humanitarian collapse.
The network described the assaults as gross violations of international law, with civilians targeted on ethnic grounds. These reports align with a longstanding, systematic pattern of violence by the RSF. Following the paramilitary's capture of El Fasher, the last army stronghold in Darfur, in October 2025, credible reports documented widespread executions, rape, and the slaughter of hundreds of patients and caregivers at the Saudi Maternity Hospital. Research from Yale University’s Humanitarian Research Lab, analyzing satellite imagery, found that after taking El Fasher, the RSF conducted "widespread and systematic mass killings" and then engaged in a multi-week campaign to burn and bury human remains to conceal the evidence.
The RSF's brutal tactics are deeply rooted in its origins. The force evolved directly from the Janjaweed militias, which were responsible for the genocide in Darfur in the early 2000s that killed hundreds of thousands of people. Today, that campaign of ethnic violence has resumed. The United States government determined in January 2025 that the RSF and allied militias have committed genocide in Darfur during the current war, citing systematic murder and sexual violence on an ethnic basis. Human rights organizations and UN investigators have consistently reported that the RSF and allied Arab militias are waging a campaign to transform Darfur into an Arab-dominated region, targeting non-Arab communities like the Masalit, Fur, and Zaghawa for extermination.
The international response has been marked by strong condemnation but ineffective action. Regional powers, including Saudi Arabia, Egypt, and Qatar, have denounced the "horrific violations" and atrocities against civilians. The UN's top relief official has lamented a global reaction of "resignation" and "apathy," starkly contrasting with the outcry over the Darfur genocide two decades ago. Despite briefings to the Security Council detailing mass atrocities, the UN body has been paralyzed by geopolitical rivalries, failing to mount a coordinated effort to protect civilians or halt the flow of weapons. The World Health Organization reports that over 1,600 people have been killed in attacks on healthcare facilities in 2025 alone, with the RSF accused of forcibly detaining health workers and civilians.
As the conflict approaches its 1,000-day mark, the humanitarian crisis is apocalyptic. Famine has been confirmed in multiple areas, including El Fasher and Kadugli, with over 21 million people facing acute food insecurity. More than 12 million people have been displaced, creating the world's largest hunger and displacement crisis. The recent violence in North Darfur and the RSF's strategic shift to besiege key cities in the Kordofan region signal an intensification of a war with no end in sight, leaving civilians trapped between frontline fighting and a systematic campaign of ethnic terror.