ATROCITIES IN SUDANSudan: Unfolding Human Catastrophe

Even by the sorry standards of Sudanese history, the recent atrocities committed by various factions in what seems like an endless civil war stand out. In the last three weeks or so, the levels of killing and sheer cruelty have shocked aid agencies and the international community.

Recent Developments
1) Capture of al-Fashir (el-Fasher) and mass killings in North Darfur — late October 2025

·  On 26–29 October 2025 the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) announced and consolidated the capture of al-Fashir (also written El Fasher), the last major SAF (Sudanese Armed Forces) stronghold in Darfur. Reuters reports the takeover triggered waves of mass killings, summary executions, killings inside hospitals, and targeted attacks on civilians. The ICRC head described the situation in Darfur as “horrific.”

2) Reported massacre at the Saudi Hospital / Saudi Maternity Hospital in al-Fashir

·  Multiple sources, satellite imagery and local witnesses reported mass killings at the Saudi Hospital (maternity hospital) in al-Fashir. A Time report cites hundreds killed at that site (reports have mentioned ~460 deaths in connection with the hospital), and survivors and rights groups recount people being separated (men, women) and executed. The RSF has denied some of the allegations; international bodies are investigating.

3) Mass displacement and humanitarian collapse

·  The fighting around al-Fashir has produced large new waves of displacement — tens of thousands fled the city immediately, adding to an enormous national displacement crisis. Recent consolidated figures from UNHCR/OCHA/IOM show more than 11–12 million people forcibly displaced since the conflict escalated (internal and external combined, with many millions newly displaced inside Sudan). Humanitarian access is severely restricted in many areas.

4) Famine zones expand — IPC Phase 5 confirmed in new areas

·  The Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) and reporting agencies confirmed famine conditions spreading into El Fasher and Kadugli (South Kordofan) in late October/early November 2025 — the most catastrophic food insecurity phase with acute malnutrition and excess deaths. More than 21 million people in Sudan are reported to face severe food insecurity.

5) International legal and rights responses

·  ICC prosecutors opened or broadened probes into reported mass killings in al-Fashir, Reuters reports. Amnesty, Human Rights Watch and other groups have documented alleged war crimes and ethnic-based attacks and called for accountability. The UN Secretary-General and leading humanitarian agencies described the war as “spiraling out of control.”