Sudan: UN warns of 'another El Fasher' in Kordofan
Geneva, Switzerland (PANA) - Kordofan must not become the new Darfur, the UN human rights chief warned on Friday.
Volker Türk recalled that the mass atrocities – the most serious crimes imaginable – perpetrated in El Fasher were “predictable” and “could have been avoided”, but that the international community stood by and did nothing.
Meeting in a special session in Geneva, the UN Human Rights Council heard a new cry of alarm from Mr. Türk, who denounced the escalating violence in the Kordofan region of central Sudan. "All the signs are there: bombings, blockades, people driven from their homes, blatant disregard for civilian life," he declared, reiterating that "international law must not be flouted before our very eyes".
Between Darfur to the west and Khartoum to the east, the oil-rich state of North Kordofan has emerged as one of the epicenters of the conflict that has pitted the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) paramilitary militia against the Sudanese army since April 2023. At the end of October, the RSF seized control of the town of Bara, about 30 kilometers from El Obeid, the capital of North Kordofan, which is now encircled by the rebels.
By issuing this new warning, Mr. Türk said he hopes the international community will act to prevent a repeat of the "predictable scenario" of El Fasher, the capital of North Darfur, which was captured by the RSF at the end of October after more than 500 days of siege. Despite some twenty warnings and confirmation of famine in the city, the "bloodbath" that accompanied its takeover by the paramilitaries could not be avoided.
Since then, the information circulating about El Fasher has been chilling: massacres of civilians, ethnically motivated executions, sexual violence – including gang rapes – kidnappings for ransom, arbitrary detentions, and other atrocities. “This is a pattern we have documented repeatedly in this conflict,” insists the UN human rights chief.
The warnings have largely fallen on deaf ears. “The bloodstains on the ground in El Fasher were photographed from space. The stain on the international community’s record is less visible, but just as damning,” denounced Volker Türk. The risk of a repeat of this sequence in Kordofan is now very real, he warned, stressing that “the international community clearly has a duty to act”. Too much “pretense and posturing”, he said, for too few concrete measures.
For the High Commissioner, it is urgent to ensure the protection of civilians, guarantee safe passage for those fleeing, and place accountability at the heart of any political solution.
“Thirdly, the international community must take action against the individuals and companies that are fueling and profiting from this war. Sudan is caught in a proxy war for its natural resources and raw materials. Many countries in the region and beyond are involved,” he warned. He also called for the Sudanese case to be referred to the International Criminal Court and for “respect for the arms embargo”.
Surya Deva, an independent expert with the Human Rights Council, emphasised the scale of the sexual violence in El Fasher.
When the RSF entered shelters for displaced people near the university, they reportedly "selected women and girls at gunpoint", "raped at least 25 of them", and forced "more than 100 families" to flee under fire. "We are horrified by the scale and brutality of the sexual violence used as a deliberate strategy of domination and humiliation aimed at destroying communities," she stated.
The United Nations independent international fact-finding mission on Sudan confirms: hundreds of women and girls have been raped, often gang-raped, including in public, "without fear of reprisals or prosecution".
“The ethnic, political, and gender-based patterns are blatant: men belonging to certain ethnic groups are executed; women and children are predominantly victims of rape, abduction, and displacement,” said Mona Rishmawi, a member of the fact-finding mission. “A large part of El Fasher is now a crime scene,” she said, noting that “these crimes are not hidden; they are filmed, broadcast, and even glorified”.
Her mission is now investigating similar tactics in Kordofan, where civilians are surrounded, humanitarian aid is blocked and famine is setting in – a chain of events which she believes could lead to “another El Fasher”.
Supported by 23 states and more than 30 observers, the special session of the Human Rights Council is to consider a draft resolution providing for a "strong condemnation" of the violence perpetrated by the RSF and calling for an urgent investigation into the violations committed in El Fasher and in the region by all parties.
-0- PANA MA 15Nov2025
