Darfur Network for Human Rights

Fighters from Sudan’s Rapid Support Forces (RSF) have captured and forced dozens of young men to fight in the ongoing conflict around El Fasher, according to testimonies gathered by the Darfur Network for Human Rights.

After an 18-month siege, the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) last week seized control of El Fasher — the Sudanese army’s last stronghold in Darfur — causing the death and displacement of thousands of people in their assault. The fall of El Fasher has been regarded as a turning point in Sudan’s conflict.

The head of the Sudan Transparency and Policy Tracker, Professor Suliman Baldo, argues that the capture of the city is no triumph for the RSF. In an interview with Radio France Internationale, Professor Baldo said that while El Fasher’s fall might be a military victory, the resulting actions constitute a political and moral defeat for the RSF.

He said the RSF’s "growing record of war crimes and crimes against humanity has destroyed whatever legitimacy they may have claimed", noting that the situation could lead to a "de facto partition" of the country, with two rival governments controlling different halves.