A recent report from the Independent International Fact-Finding Mission for the Sudan has revealed that the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) executed a wave of ethnically targeted killings and widespread acts of violence, including sexual abuses and enforced disappearances, during their seizure of El Fasher in late October. The report emphasizes that these actions exhibit clear 'hallmarks of genocide' particularly aimed at the Zaghawa and Fur communities within the region. The findings highlight a dire warning regarding the potential for continued atrocities if the situation remains unchecked.

The mission's investigation established that at least three fundamental acts of genocide were perpetrated by the RSF: the killing of members from protected ethnic groups, causing severe physical and mental harm to the victims, and intentionally creating living conditions designed to eliminate the targeted group either partially or completely. Chair of the Mission, Mohamed Chande Othman, underscored that the systematic nature and public endorsement of these operations reveal they were not mere collateral violence but rather planned and coordinated assaults sanctioned at upper echelons of RSF leadership.

With the evidence presented in this report, the international community faces a pressing challenge to respond to these findings. The implications are serious, not only for the Zaghawa and Fur communities, who have already borne the brunt of this violence, but also for the broader stability of Sudan. The findings call for immediate international attention and action to prevent further violence and protect vulnerable populations from the ongoing humanitarian crisis, underscoring the crucial need for accountability for those responsible for these atrocities.