FRI 12 SEPT -- The largest remaining displacement camp in El Fasher has suffered “mass bombardment” and a significant increase in the number of people being killed over recent weeks, satellite images suggest.
The latest report from the Yale Humanitarian Research Lab included evidence of more than 50 munition impacts or destroyed structures inside the Abu Shouk camp between 30 August to 10 September, including at least 22 in the camp’s main market.
Also visible were 190 fresh burial mounds that appeared in a civilian cemetery in a period of less than six weeks.
It comes as the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) continues its push to take El Fasher, the last state capital in Darfur not under its control, after a siege of more than 500 days.
Abu Shouk sits on the northern edge of the territory currently held by the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and is a fiercely contested area, but also remains a population centre for the estimated 260,000 civilians still trapped in the city.
Last week, a report by the UN Independent International Fact-Finding Mission (FFM) said that, since the siege began in May 2024, more than 300 people have been reported killed by shelling of the camp.
The Yale HRL report included a map showing dozens of impact sites around the camp and said that, due to the difficulty of assessing damage to dense urban areas from satellite imagery, the figure of 50 damaged structures was “believed to be a significant underestimate”.
The damage, along with the appearance of so many new burial mounds, indicates that “there is no civilian safe haven in El Fasher”, it said.
At least 50 munition impacts were identified in the Abu Shouk camp
As reported over recent weeks, the RSF has since May sought to tighten its siege on El Fasher by using excavators to build an earthen wall encircling the city.
The latest images show that, between 27 August and 10 September, the wall was extended by more than 7km, bringing its total length to at least 38km and leaving only two gaps totalling around 13km, both in areas of RSF control.
“In short, the city is almost fully encircled by the earthen walls and RSF appears to be rapidly closing these gaps while bombarding Abu Shouk IDP Camp,” the report said.
Recent months have seen widespread accounts of people who try to flee El Fasher being looted, detained, subjected to sexual violence, or killed by the roadside.
‘Civilians are paying the highest price for this war’
The FFM report, which looked at violations in the broader conflict, concluded that both SAF and the RSF were committing “war crimes on a large scale”.
The mission said civilians had been targeted with killings, torture, and sexual violence, while civilian infrastructure across the country - including medical centres, schools, and displacement camps - had suffered “extensive damage”.
It added that, as well as war crimes, the RSF had committed crimes against humanity, a conclusion reached because of the “widespread and systematic character” of the group’s conduct as well as the “existence of an underlying policy”.
“Our findings leave no room for doubt: civilians are paying the highest price in this war,” said Mohamed Chande Othman, chair of the mission.
“Both sides have deliberately targeted civilians through attacks, summary executions, arbitrary detention, torture, and inhuman treatment in detention facilities, including denial of food, sanitation, and medical care.
“These are not accidental tragedies but deliberate strategies amounting to war crimes.”
Satellite images from 10 September show likely munitions damage (highlighted red) at Abu Shouk's main market. © 2025, Maxar Technologies
Since the start of the war in April 2023, reports have alleged attacks on civilians by both SAF and the RSF, motivated either by military gain, or ethnic hatred, or a belief that a neutral civilian group had collaborated with the other side.
Of the siege of El Fasher, the report said the RSF had committed “myriad crimes against humanity”, including murder, torture, enslavement, rape, and persecution on ethnic grounds.
It said the RSF’s sexual violence in North Darfur has mostly “targeted women and girls belonging to non-Arab communities”, describing it as a “deliberate tactic to humiliate and subjugate women, girls, and entire communities”.
Also highlighted were attacks by SAF on the Kanabi, a non-Arab group typically living in agricultural communities, following its recapture of Gezira state in January.
The FFM said soldiers arrived in several villages in armed vehicles before killing dozens of unarmed civilians, burning homes, and looting property while using racial slurs.
The report urged the international community to explore more ways to bring perpetrators of violations to justice at the International Criminal Court.
It also called on states to sanction anyone suspected of international crimes and to pursue them in national courts using universal jurisdiction.
In a statement responding to the report, the UN’s core group for Sudan - comprising Germany, Ireland, The Netherlands, Norway, and the UK - described the findings as “horrific”.
“The warring parties and allied militias continue to prioritise military gains over civilian lives,” it said.
“This war must end. We call on the international community – including regional actors, the African Union and the UN – to use its influence to push for peace talks, unblock humanitarian access, ensure civilian safety, respect the arms embargo, and promote peace and accountability.”
The group also called for the mandate of the FFM, which will be up for renewal in October, to be extended.
The weekly dispatch features the latest developments, first-hand testimony, footage, photos, stats and analysis on Sudan. We can connect you with voices from the ground, experts and survivors of the war. I am available at +44 7514 796 678 / sudan@avaaz.org.
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The Rapid Support Forces (RSF) is building an earthen wall around El Fasher to create a “kill box” and prevent civilians fleeing the besieged city, satellite imagery suggests.
People caught trying to smuggle food into the besieged city of El Fasher are being “executed on sight” by the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), according to one civilian.
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