Women in Darfur report rape, lost children

12/11/2025 16:56

Women fleeing Sudan's al-Fashir city report killings, systematic rape and the disappearance of their children following its capture by the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), the U.N. agency for women reported.



Al-Fashir's fall on October 26 has cemented the RSF's control of the Darfur region in its 2-1/2-year war with the Sudanese army.



People fleeing the city have described civilians being shot in the streets and attacked in drone strikes.



Women escaping from al-Fashir say they have witnessed killings, rape and the disappearance of their children



Sexual violence was also widespread.



Around 11 million women and girls are facing acute food insecurity in famine-struck Darfur, and UN Women warned they even face sexual violence while searching for food.



Field reports from Darfur describe women foraging for wild leaves and berries to boil into soup.



The U.N. Human Rights Chief said on Friday that he feared summary executions, rape and ethnically motivated violence are continuing in the town.



About 82,000 people have fled al-Fashir and surrounding areas since October 26, according to the U.N., while as many as 200,000 people may still be trapped inside the city, according to estimates of its population towards the end of the 18-month siege.