El Fasher atrocities under UN spotlight, but accountability gaps remain in Sudan

In light of the atrocities committed by Sudan’s paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) and their allies in and around El Fasher, North Darfur, it was vital for the UN Human Rights Council to hold a special ses­sion and empower the Independent International Fact-Finding Mission (FFM) for Sudan to conduct further inquiries and expose perpetrators. Defend­De­fen­ders welcomes the adoption of a resolution at the end of this special session, which took place today in Geneva, but warns that more is needed to ensure accountability in Sudan. 

“There are risks of further mass atrocities, including targeted ethnic violence, in North Darfur and through­out Sudan,” said Hassan Shire, Executive Director, DefendDefenders. “While the abso­lute priority is a ceasefire, the UN Secretary-General and the High Commissioner for Human Rights should urgently allocate adequate resources to the FFM so it can document violations, iden­tify those responsible, and share information with the International Criminal Court (ICC) and other accountability mechanisms.” 

As highlighted in a civil society letter calling on the Council to hold a special session on El Fasher, the Council had a responsibility to uphold its prevention mandate and address the crisis in a way that centres the voices of Sudanese victims, survivors, and civil society. The Council should continue to centre these voices and expose violations committed in relation to what is currently the world’s worst humanitarian, human rights, and displacement crisis.

While efforts must be directed at stopping atrocities by RSF and their allied forces, the Council should also continue to condemn violations of international law committed by the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF), some of which amount to war crimes, as documented by the FFM. The FFM has a man­date to collect and preserve evidence of violations committed by all parties to the conflict. The UN and its mem­ber states should urgently allocate additional funding for the FFM, which is currently gravely un­der-resourced and under-staffed.

“What we are witnessing is an atrocity crisis of a scale rarely seen, even in a land­scape marked by numerous conflicts,” said Nicolas Agostini, Representative to the UN, Senior Ad­vo­cate and Re­sear­cher, DefendDefenders. “Attention is currently on the egregious crimes com­mit­ted by RSF and their allies in El Fasher, but the FFM has a mandate to investigate all parties. Atrocities com­mitted by one side do not excuse or give a free pass to the other side.”

DefendDefenders regrets that the Council did not do its utmost to secure and allocate necessary re­sources, including human and financial resources, to the FFM. The resolution adopted today requests an oral update delivered not by the FFM but by the UN Human Rights Office (OHCHR), before the next regular Council session (March 2026). The FFM, for its part, will in March 2026 present a report on the findings of its urgent inquiry into the recent violations committed in and around El Fasher. Under-fun­ding trans­lates into accountability gaps, as many crimes and violations, committed by all sides to the conflict, go undocumented.

In addition, DefendDefenders regrets that the Council did not specifically call out external actors that are fuelling the violence and enabling atrocities. While today’s resolution condemns “all forms of ex­ter­nal interference that fuel the conflict,” it does not name the United Arab Emirates (UAE), which has been back­ing the RSF and its campaign of atrocities against Darfur’s Masalit and other non-Arab tri­bes, as well as widespread sexual violence against women and girls, in Darfur and across Sudan. It also refrains from naming backers of the SAF, including Egypt, Eritrea and other states.

The Council held its 38th special session on Sudan just a few weeks after concluding its 60th regular session (8 September-8 October 2025), during which it extended the mandate of the FFM, in line with civil society’s expectations. 


For more information, please contact: 
Estella Kansiime 
Advocacy, Research and Communications Manager
[email protected] or +256 782 360 460 (English)
Nicolas Agostini 
Representative to the United Nations, Senior Advocate and Researcher
[email protected] or +41 79 813 49 91 (English & French)

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