WHO Condemns RSF Massacre at El-Fasher Hospital, Death Toll Rising

The World Health Organization (WHO) condemned a massacre at the only operational hospital in El-Fasher, Sudan, where the paramilitary group Rapid Support Forces (RSF) is believed to have killed over 460 individuals at the Saudi Maternity Hospital. This incident forms part of ongoing mass killings in El-Fasher, which have left the local population in dire straits. Testimonies from survivors and investigations by open-source researchers indicate that the RSF and its allies are conducting systematic executions in the city.

Reports suggest that the RSF captured El-Fasher, the last stronghold of the Sudanese military in the western Darfur region, on October 1, 2023. This victory has granted the RSF control over the entire Darfur region, effectively dividing Sudan into western and eastern territories. The group’s rise to power has raised alarms over the potential for further genocidal actions, reminiscent of the atrocities committed between 2003 and 2005, when the RSF was implicated in the deaths of approximately 300,000 people from non-Arab communities during what is now known as the Darfur Genocide.

The WHO has reported that this latest attack marks the fourth time in a month that the Saudi Maternity Hospital has been targeted. On October 1, a nurse was killed, and three other health workers were injured. Just two days later, six health workers—including four doctors, a nurse, and a pharmacist—were abducted. The WHO has stated that more than 460 patients and their companions were reportedly shot and killed during the attack.

In a statement, WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus expressed his horror at the events: “WHO is appalled and deeply shocked by reports of the tragic killing of more than 460 patients and companions at Saudi Maternity Hospital in El-Fasher. All attacks on health care must stop immediately and unconditionally.”

Independent investigations by Yale University’s Humanitarian Research Lab (HRL) corroborate the accounts of mass killings at the hospital. Satellite imagery shows what appear to be piles of bodies near the hospital, alongside signs of bloodshed. The scale of violence has reached a level where pools of blood are detectable from space, underscoring the humanitarian crisis unfolding in El-Fasher.

The WHO categorized the situation in El-Fasher as “rapidly worsening,” with escalating violence leading to severe humanitarian conditions. The organization highlighted how rising hunger and disease are exacerbating the plight of civilians, including countless children, further crippling an already fragile health system.

Despite widespread international condemnation, RSF chief Mohammad Hamdan Daglo, known as Hemedti, has insisted that Sudan will be unified “by peace or through war.” The RSF currently controls roughly a third of Sudan, primarily in the west and southwest, while the Sudanese military maintains its hold over the east and the capital, Khartoum.

The ongoing civil war in Sudan, which erupted in 2023 following the collapse of a power-sharing agreement between the military and the RSF, has led to over 17,000 deaths in Darfur alone. Notably, the United Nations reported that up to 15,000 people were killed in a single massacre in El-Geneina.

In addition to the mass killings, the RSF and its allies face accusations of systematic sexual violence against women, including rape and forced marriages, further compounding the humanitarian crisis. The international community remains on high alert as the situation continues to evolve, with many calling for immediate action to protect civilians and restore stability in the region.