FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE February 20, 2026
The Darfur Network for Human Rights (DNHR) welcomes the United Nations Independent International Fact-Finding Mission’s determination that the Rapid Support Forces committed genocide in El-Fasher, as well as the United States Treasury Department’s sanctions on three RSF commanders responsible for the atrocities.
The UN Mission’s report, released February 19, concludes that the RSF carried out “a coordinated campaign of destruction against non-Arab communities in and around El-Fasher” with evidence pointing to genocide. The Mission found that at least three underlying acts of genocide were committed: killing members of protected ethnic groups (Zaghawa and Fur), causing serious bodily and mental harm, and deliberately inflicting conditions calculated to bring about the group’s physical destruction.
DNHR’s November 2025 report, “The Fall of El-Fasher,” documented:
- Nearly 500 civilians killed at the Saudi Maternity Hospital on October 26, 2025
- RSF fighters explicitly targeting Zaghawa and Fur communities with statements like “You dogs, slaves, cows of SAF!”
- Systematic sexual violence against non-Arab women and girls
- An 18-month siege that deliberately starved the population
- Mass disappearances and extortion through ransom demands
On February 18, the U.S. Treasury sanctioned three RSF commanders for perpetrating “a horrific campaign of ethnic killings, torture, starvation, and sexual violence.” Among those sanctioned is an RSF brigadier general who filmed himself killing unarmed civilians. The Treasury stated the RSF “engaged in a systematic campaign to destroy evidence of mass killings by burying, burning and disposing of tens of thousands of bodies.”
Three commanders sanctioned is a start, but accountability must reach the top of the command structure. RSF leader Mohamed Hamdan ‘Hemedti’ Dagalo publicly praised the El-Fasher takeover as a ‘major and historic military victory.’ Command responsibility cannot stop at mid-level officers.
DNHR notes with grave concern that while the international community recognizes genocide in El-Fasher, systematic attacks on civilians continue. Between February 15-19, 2026, drone strikes across Sudan’s Kordofan and Blue Nile regions killed over 80 civilians, including 26 people among them 15 children killed at a water well on the first day of Ramadan.
Under the 1948 Genocide Convention, states have an obligation to prevent and punish genocide. DNHR calls on the international community to:
- Expand sanctions to include RSF leader Hemedti and the full command structure
- Support ICC investigation and prosecution for genocide, war crimes, and crimes against humanity
- Implement and enforce comprehensive arms embargoes on both warring parties
- Ensure immediate, unhindered humanitarian access to all conflict-affected areas
- Establish urgent civilian protection mechanisms in Kordofan where similar patterns are emerging
- Press for an immediate ceasefire, particularly during the holy month of Ramadan
DNHR stands ready to support all accountability mechanisms with our documentation, testimonies, and evidence.
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About DNHR: The Darfur Network for Human Rights is a grassroots documentation organization based in Kampala, Uganda, monitoring and reporting on atrocities in Sudan. DNHR’s reports have been cited by international media, UN agencies, and human rights organizations worldwide.