Massacre at El-Fasher Hospital: Hundreds Killed Amid RSF Seizure of North Darfur

At least 460 are reported to have been slaughtered at the Saudi Maternity Hospital in El-Fasher after it was overrun by the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) in a devastating eruption of violence in Sudan's Darfur province. The dead included patients, their attendants, and hospital staff, which was one of the deadliest individual attacks since the war broke out.

The RSF took El-Fasher, the last major Sudanese army base in west Darfur, after a prolonged siege. Witnesses and relief groups testified to horrific scenes of fighters shooting the sick and wounded as a matter of course. Satellite imagery analyzed by independent experts revealed clusters of bodies and areas of pooled blood close to the hospital and town boundaries, indicating signs of mass murder.

This brutality has plunged the world into shock as world agencies condemned the attack and called for unconditional humanitarian access and accountability. The World Health Organization reported in utmost shock that this is contributing to over 285 confirmed attacks on health facilities in Sudan following the eruption of violence.

The fall of El-Fasher effectively splits Sudan into two spheres of influence, fuelling the humanitarian crisis and risk of a new genocide in Darfur. Tens of thousands have already fled the city, with more taking refuge in over-capacity camps. Aid workers are sounding the alarm for worsening conditions and the urgent requirement for medical and food assistance.

As RSF vows to bring Sudan "peacefully or by war," the world community comes under mounting pressure to act and halt the atrocities.