Information
Following international condemnation over alleged atrocities during the capture of el-Fasher, Sudan’s Rapid Support Forces (RSF) announced the detention of several of its own fighters, including a man known as “Abu Lulu,” who appeared in multiple verified videos committing executions of unarmed individuals. Graphic footage circulated online showed scenes of mass killings, with AFP verifying clips of Abu Lulu firing at close range and standing among corpses and burned vehicles. The RSF released a video claiming to show him imprisoned in North Darfur. The Centre for Information Resilience (CIR), a human rights NGO, confirmed that at least six RSF members, including Abu Lulu, had been identified from verified footage showing mass killings of both combatants and civilians.
In a UN briefing, humanitarian chief Tom Fletcher reported “credible accounts of widespread executions,” rapes, and mutilations after the RSF took over el-Fasher. Arjan Hehenkamp from the International Rescue Committee stressed the need for international pressure on RSF’s allies to protect civilians and ensure humanitarian access. El-Fasher, the capital of North Darfur, fell after an 18-month siege of starvation and bombardment. Survivors described mass killings, children shot before their parents, and civilians assaulted as they fled, highlighting the severe humanitarian crisis in the city.
Source: AFP, DW
So What
The RSF’s announcement of detaining its own fighters is likely an attempt to mitigate the surge of negative international media coverage following reports of atrocities in el-Fasher. It appears highly probable that this move is largely performative, intended to project accountability rather than enforce it, and that the detained fighters may be quietly released once media attention subsides. In the broader context of Sudan’s ongoing conflict, such massacres are unfortunately consistent with a pattern of widespread violence and impunity that has characterised the war since its outset.
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