Sudan’s paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) have launched a series of devastating attacks near the country’s western border with Chad, resulting in the destruction of multiple villages and the displacement of thousands of civilians. According to the United Nations and local survivors, the violence marks a significant escalation in the ongoing conflict between the RSF and the Sudanese army, which began in April 2023.
The impact of the recent offensive has been severe, particularly in the North Darfur state. The UN migration agency reported that more than 3,500 people were forced to flee their homes on Friday alone, specifically from the village of Wadi Fungo in the Um Baru locality. Survivors described scenes of absolute devastation, with homes reduced to rubble and bodies left in the streets. Issa Ibrahim, who managed to escape across the border into Chad with his family, recounted that they passed through the entirely burned villages of Oruwa and Ana Baji where victims remained unburied.
Residents from other affected areas shared similar accounts of brutality. Mohamed Adam, a 43-year-old from Qarboura, reported that his two brothers were among those killed when RSF fighters set fire to homes and targeted those unable to flee. The RSF has been accused by the UN of repeatedly committing atrocities against non-Arab ethnic groups, particularly the Zaghawa, who reside in western North Darfur. These attacks follow the RSF’s seizure of the regional stronghold of El-Fasher last year, an action described by a UN inquiry as bearing the hallmarks of genocide. The paramilitary group has since pushed west, attacking enclaves controlled by the joint forces, a coalition of army-allied armed groups whose leaders and fighters are also predominantly Zaghawa.
Beyond the immediate destruction, the humanitarian toll on the youngest population has been dire. A separate report from UNICEF released on Monday indicated that the RSF has killed or injured at least 330 children during the first six months of 2026. This figure includes over 200 fatalities and 100 children who were maimed, primarily in the Kordofan and Darfur regions. Sheldon Yett, the UNICEF Sudan chief, noted that children are increasingly targeted in their homes, at markets, and while seeking essential services.
The broader conflict has resulted in staggering loss of life, with aid agencies estimating that more than 200,000 people have been killed since the war broke out. Across the nation, five million children are currently internally displaced, and millions face severe food insecurity, including more than 825,000 children under the age of five suffering from severe acute malnutrition.
