UN Investigators Find Evidence of Genocide in Sudan's El Fasher Siege
El Fasher, 19 February 2026
United Nations fact-finders have documented systematic ethnic cleansing by paramilitary forces against non-Arab communities in Sudan’s Darfur region. The investigation reveals coordinated mass killings, sexual violence, and enforced disappearances targeting the Zaghawa and Fur ethnic groups during the October 2025 siege of El Fasher. RSF fighters were recorded stating intentions to ‘eliminate anything black from Darfur’, providing clear evidence of genocidal intent according to international law.
Escalation from Mass Killings to Genocide Determination
The latest UN findings represent a significant escalation from previous documentation of mass violence in El Fasher. In October 2025, UN investigators had already reported that over 6,000 civilians were killed during a three-day RSF assault on the city, marking one of the deadliest incidents since Sudan’s civil war began in April 2023 [https://kakuma.laio.site/839f9f8-Sudan-conflict-RSF-violence/]. However, the Independent International Fact-Finding Mission for Sudan, releasing its comprehensive report on 18 February 2026, has now determined that these killings constitute clear indicators of genocide rather than isolated war crimes [1]. The mission’s chair, Mohamed Chande Othman, explained that the scale, coordination, and public endorsement of the operation by senior RSF leadership demonstrate that the crimes were not random excesses of war, but formed part of a planned and organised operation that bears the defining characteristics of genocide [1][3].
Systematic Targeting Based on Ethnic Identity
The UN investigation documented a systematic pattern of ethnically targeted killings, sexual violence, destruction, and public statements explicitly calling for the elimination of non-Arab communities [5]. Survivors reported RSF fighters making explicit statements revealing genocidal intent, including ‘Is there anyone Zaghawa among you? If we find Zaghawa, we will kill them all’ and ‘We want to eliminate anything black from Darfur’ [1][3]. The mission identified that the RSF met at least three of the five criteria for genocide under international law: killing members of a protected ethnic group, causing serious bodily and mental harm, and deliberately inflicting conditions of life calculated to bring about the group’s physical destruction [1][4]. Mission expert Mona Rishmawi stated that the RSF acted with intent to destroy, in whole or in part, the Zaghawa and Fur communities in El Fasher, describing these as the hallmarks of genocide [1][3][5].
18-Month Siege Creates Conditions for Destruction
The October 2025 massacre was preceded by an 18-month siege that systematically cut off civilians from food, water, medical supplies, and humanitarian assistance [1]. This prolonged siege created conditions calculated to bring about the physical destruction of the targeted communities, with the RSF deliberately imposing life-threatening circumstances on non-Arab populations [1][6]. The siege culminated in the RSF’s takeover of El Fasher on or around 26 and 27 October 2025, during which mass killings, rape, sexual violence, torture, arbitrary detention, extortion, and enforced disappearances occurred [3][6]. In the two days preceding the main assault, the RSF killed at least 300 people in the Abu Shouk displacement camp outside El Fasher, demonstrating the premeditated nature of the ethnic targeting [4].
International Response and Warnings Ignored
UN political chief Rosemary DiCarlo stated on 18 February 2026 that the horrific events in El Fasher were preventable, whilst UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk had warned of the risk of mass atrocities, but the warnings were not heeded [4]. The UN Security Council convened on 19 February 2026 to discuss Sudan as the war nears its third year, with the meeting coming amid fresh warnings about the dangerous escalation in Darfur [7]. British Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper described the situation as the worst humanitarian crisis of the 21st century, noting that the war has left 33 million people in need of humanitarian assistance and 14 million people forced to flee their homes [4]. The conflict, which began in mid-April 2023, has now resulted in over 40,000 deaths according to UN figures, with nearly 12 million people displaced [4][5]. The UN estimates that approximately 90,000 people fled El Fasher in the weeks following the RSF’s capture of the city [4].