Sudan: At least 40 killed in RSF assault on displaced persons camp in Darfur’s El-Fasher

At least 40 people were killed on Monday, August 11, when Sudan’s Rapid Support Forces (RSF) attacked the Abu Shouk camp for displaced persons in the war-torn Darfur region, according to local aid groups and citizen-led resistance Committees.

El-Fasher, the last major army stronghold in Darfur, also came under heavy assault during the incident, which aid workers say left victims shot in their homes and gunned down in public spaces. The camp, home to about 200,000 people, has been caught in the crossfire of the two-year conflict between the army and RSF, with the UN warning that besieged civilians are facing starvation.

Satellite imagery analyzed by the Yale Humanitarian Research Lab appears to corroborate reports that the attack came from the north, showing a convoy of around 40 light vehicles in the camp’s north-western areas. The lab is reviewing disturbing footage allegedly depicting RSF fighters shooting at fleeing civilians and using ethnic slurs.

Abu Shouk camp was established more than two decades ago for non-Arab communities such as the Fur and Zaghawa, who had fled Janjaweed militia attacks—forces from which the RSF later evolved. The group has long faced accusations of genocide and ethnic cleansing in Darfur, charges it denies.

The latest violence follows a pattern of targeted assaults on camps around El-Fasher, with similar atrocities recorded in Zamzam camp earlier this year, where more than 100 were killed. Observers believe Zaghawa civilians may have been specifically targeted in Monday’s attack, as Zaghawa fighters have aligned with the army in defending the city. Since the war erupted in April 2023, tens of thousands have been killed, over 12 million displaced, and famine declared in several regions, deepening Sudan’s humanitarian catastrophe.