Khartoum: Sudan has urged the international community to hold the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) accountable following the killing of hundreds of patients and medical staff in El-Fasher, the capital of North Darfur state. The Sudanese Health Ministry issued a statement condemning the massacre at the Saudi Hospital in El-Fasher, where 460 patients and their companions were reportedly killed.
According to Anadolu Agency, the Health Ministry also criticized the RSF for killing 12 medical personnel in the city of Bara, located in North Kordofan state. On Wednesday, the World Health Organization (WHO) confirmed the fatalities at the Saudi Maternity Hospital in El-Fasher, heightening concerns over the RSF's actions in the region.
Sudanese Prime Minister Kamal Idris has called on the UN Security Council to implement measures to protect civilians and hold those responsible for these acts accountable. In a televised address, Idris described the events in El-Fasher as war crimes, genocide, and ethnic cleansing, urging the international community to take action.
The RSF took control of El-Fasher on Sunday after intense clashes with the Sudanese army, with reports of mass killings and ethnic cleansing emerging from the city. The Joint Force of Armed Movements in Darfur, allied with the Sudanese army, has accused the RSF of committing war crimes and has called for the group to be labeled a terrorist organization.
The Joint Force, which includes the Justice and Equality Movement and the Sudan Liberation Movement, claims to have evidence, including testimonies and video documentation, of the crimes perpetrated by the RSF. Meanwhile, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) reported that 1,750 people fled to Chad on Wednesday due to escalating violence near the Tina border area in North Darfur.
The ongoing conflict between the Sudanese army and the RSF, which began on April 15, 2023, has resulted in approximately 20,000 deaths and displaced over 15 million people, according to reports from the UN and local sources.